


Hello, Nice to Meet You...

by PortlyPuppy



Category: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (TV)
Genre: Complicated Relationships, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Love, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:41:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 27,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22633675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PortlyPuppy/pseuds/PortlyPuppy
Summary: It doesn’t not help, also, that he knows Rebecca is still casting him fleeting looks over her shoulder, and is not giving Josh and his King’s Speech any of her attention. Something about this dynamic has clearly changed and she evidently wanted to catch up with him, so why the hell not now? He walks over to her and begins again...An expansion of episodes 408-the finale with more of what is going on inside Rebecca and Greg's heads. Follows canon but with added scenes.
Relationships: Rebecca Bunch & Greg Serrano, Rebecca Bunch/Greg Serrano
Comments: 32
Kudos: 35





	1. 408 I'm not the person I used to be

**Author's Note:**

> So, this going to be Grebecca fic charting their relationship from when Greg returns in 408 to the end of the series. I just wanted to spend a little time expanding their dynamic, which feels a little squeezed within the confines of season 4 and Rebecca's journey, and Greg occasionally acting more like a plot device than a person. 
> 
> Plus, Greg needs more time to reflect on the dad bop issue and we will get more scenes and conversations of them dating from 410-412.
> 
> Also, Greg and Josh might get to deal with their friendship issues in a bit more detail...

It’s the smell that convinces Greg he has to leave. Sure, Home Base may have had a hip new paint-job and feature a new grazing menu tastefully curated by Heather, but it still smells the same. All the ceviche in the world can’t cover up the familiar smell of stale beer, cheap wine, and soccer-mom perfume, mingled with the scent of fried foods and hard pretzel dust.

He feels a tightness in his chest.

So, it's this, combined with Josh beginning what is clearly going to be a _terrible_ speech, which is already being lapped up by the usual adoring crowd, that triggers his flight instinct.

It doesn’t not help, also, that he knows Rebecca is still casting him fleeting looks over her shoulder, and is not giving Josh and his King’s Speech any of her attention. Something about this dynamic has clearly changed and she evidently wanted to catch up with him, so why the hell not now? He walks over to her and begins again. 

**EARLIER**

She knew she didn’t have time for it, but Rebecca can’t help herself from lingering over her closet. As she sifts though an assortment of multi-coloured dresses, she smiles and allows herself to think back to earlier that day.

_Josh Chan_.

Josh Chan in a tight vest cooking her Matzo Brei in their kitchen.

She sighs dreamily and lets her thoughts drift further into the reverie, urging along her imagination until this time Josh serves up the food with a smitten kiss. “For my girl.” Dream Rebecca wraps her arms around him and then they’re running together hand in hand around the "sights" of West Covina.

Back in reality she fingers a floral blue dress with a bow back that she hasn’t worn in, what? At least two years.

As she mulls over the outfit, her fantasy is abruptly shattered by the image of a stern-looking Mrs Chan.

“Rebecca, you hurt my Joshua and stalked our family!?”

Rebecca grimaces and quickly drops the dress, shaking her head to rid herself of the startling image of Josh's mom.

She continues browsing through her clothes, mentally encouraging herself to hurry until she finds a more fitted magenta dress and stops.

Now Nathaniel pops into her head.

It’s the Nathaniel of earlier in the day, looking tall as he talks familiarly to the security guard, and now embellished by a tray of immaculately sliced orange segments in his arms. She grins and then she’s alongside a school playing field where a sports game is taking place. Except this is no West Covina High but an expensive-looking prep school. Rebecca pats at her sleek dark hairstyle and then Nathaniel, dressed in the school colours, pulls her to him.

“Hey mom,” he says, kissing her. “How’s our son doing?”

Rebecca spins as young teenage boy runs over to them and stiffly high-fives Nathaniel. She smiles, until he turns to face her… realizing it’s Tucker’s face looking up at her.

Wait, _what_??

Her younger brother?!

“Shoot,” she rubs her forehead in confusion and then moves into her closet, this time with more purpose. Deciding to keep on the dark green v-neck sweater and jeans she’s already wearing, she slams it shut with a bang.

_Nothing’s going to happen_. It’s only a school reunion, and she’s only really going with intention of consulting Heather and Valencia, she thinks. But then she tugs down the sweater to show a little more cleavage anyway.

She tries to phone Paula again but it goes straight to answerphone, so spends a few more moments trying to adjust her mental image of Josh and Nathaniel to those earlier in the day.

One of her BPD workbooks catches her eye just before she leaves.

“Dammit, breath Becky…” she instructs herself, but she can’t seem to escape the twinkly chimes which ring in her head.

* * *

**HOMEBASE**

“ _Greg – did you say Greg_?!”

Rebecca doesn’t even bother trying to cover the look of astonishment on her face.

“ _Greg from two years ago, who we all haven’t seen and literally never talk about? That Greg_?”

What was going on? She can't subdue the irritation that creeps into her voice. She’d arrived at the reunion and immediately cut to the chase by consulting her friends over her Josh and Nathaniel dilemma and now they were adding Greg Serrano to the mix, and not only as a contender, but as her “meant-to-be”.

As she lists the reason that they are definitely _not_ meant to be, she can’t help feeling a little hurt. After all, the reasons she’s spitting out are ones that have been put to her continuously by her friends over the last few years when she’s tried to bring up the Greg topic. 

Greg leaving was a GOOD THING. Greg has gone to a BETTER PLACE (yeah, make it sound weirdly like he’s dead). You fought ALL THE TIME. The two of you were TOXIC together.

And, it’s not even like she’d brought him up that many times anyway. Her friends had been so quick to dismiss it, repeating that he’s happy and moved on and doing great, that she’d shut memories of him up in a little box inside and tried to convince herself that she was done. That she was happy for him too. Although, she’s not sure if she ever got around to meaning that last part.

She’s getting to the end of her list of reasons they are not MTB when she hits on the two that hurt the most. Firstly, that he has moved on and is seeing someone else, and secondly that her knowledge of that fact is inextricably linked with the fact that she slept with Marco. His dad.

It’s when she’s telling them this in no uncertain terms, _“The only way we could work as if he was completely different person”_ that there’s a fuss from the other end of the room and Heather and Valencia’s faces become simultaneously shocked, that she turns and sees him. Or, sees the person who is allegedly Greg Serrano... 

* * *

Greg almost doesn’t go the reunion. He hasn’t seen Josh Chan since they parted at the airport two years ago, and to be honest, he’s not exactly sure where their relationship stands since Chan’s engagement and then non-wedding to Rebecca. He’d received an invite to said wedding but hadn’t hesitated to turn it down, even though he’d had complicated feelings about missing his childhood best friend’s wedding. However, the short notice of the event had given him the perfect excuse. Assignment deadlines etc.

But, in the end he gives himself a little AA-sponsored pep talk to get himself to Home Base. Now he’s at Emory he doesn’t feel half as disillusioned by the event as he would have done if he was still stuck behind that Home Base bar. And Whi-Jo and Hector would be there, and some guys from the debate team and student body council that he wouldn’t hate catching up with. The kind of people who had left West Covina straight after graduation, like he should have, and he'd immediately resented them for doing what he couldn’t… or wouldn't. But now that feeling has ebbed away and he realizes he the resentment has gone. 

He ponders in front of the mirror for a moment, debating whether to put some aftershave on. It’s not like he’s looking to pick anyone up at his high school reunion (although Ashley Pratt briefly flashes into his mind). He scoffs at the thought, but then dabs some on anyway.

Just as he’s on his way out his phone buzzes. It’s Marco reminding him that he’ll back at 9.30 (is the old fox really out on another date! ?) and that they need to have a heart-to-heart.

The phrase “heart-to-heart” coming from his dad unnerves Greg so much that he picks up his pace and arrives at Home Base earlier than intended. He’d planned to slip in late and unseen, when the speeches and catching up were already well underway.

So, he’s feeling a little self-conscious as he enters the room. The term DUI and alcoholic ringing louder in his head than he’d like. The last time he’d seen most of these people he’d undoubtedly been wasted and that fact suddenly seems a lot more crucial than any number of business classes he might have taken at Emory.

Luckily, he bumps straight into the comforting figures of Whi-Jo and Hector and his heart rate slows for a while until he feels the burn of a pair of eyes blazing into him. He turns to find they belong, somehow unsurprisingly, to Rebecca Bunch.

“ _Wait, Rebecca is here? At our high school reunion??_ ”

* * *

It’s awkward, of course, their first conversation (oh boy) but Rebecca grits her teeth and goes over to him. He makes her laugh within two minutes, and she warmly notes the familiar buzz from that. His mouth pauses in a soft grin of satisfaction from making her laugh.

But she can’t get distracted. She may recognize some of the feelings that are quickly resurfacing but she’s still trying to puzzle him out. He’s Greg, she’s getting that, but there’s still something distinctly un-Greggy about him. She notes the obvious signs that must be to do with his quitting drinking: his face is less shadowed, his complexion is brighter and there seems to be a lightness about his movements too.

“ _Like really diff-rent_?” he echoes her persistent questioning with a grin. 

He still smirks at her like he always did but that’s different somehow too.

(He feels it as well. He still can’t resist the urge to gently tease her but that need he once had to prove himself to her, to push her down in order to bring himself up, has gone. He’ll have to consider what that means later, as right now he’s too busy enjoying the fact that she still talks with her hands.)

Rebecca treads carefully. She’s concentrating so hard to trying to figure him out, that she can’t look away, but when he mentions that he too has a long story to tell, she knows she wants to hear all about it. All the earlier talk of “meant-to-be” melts aways as she realizes she honestly wants to know what he’s been doing in the last couple of years. She once encouraged that little seed of an idea of business school and wants to know how it has flourished into this seemingly new-and-improved Greg Serrano.

But then there’s a warning voice in her head saying “Marco”. God, does he know? She digs a little.

“… _Catch up in a no-drama kind of way_?”

He's happy with no drama. He doesn't know. She’s got to tell him. The post-diagnosis, post-therapy Rebecca Bunch knows that she can’t keep this secret. It’ll grow and grow and eventually burst and she can’t do that to him. He’ll hate her even more, whereas if she tells him now she might be able to salvage… _something_?

* * *

“Ta da!” Rebecca feels proud as she shows off her own little business with her kind-of-name emblazoned above it.

“ _Wow, you really twisted those two words together,_ _huh_?” Greg jokes, appreciatively.

He does look impressed, she can tell, and she squints, trying to look at it through a pair of eyes that haven’t seen her into two long years.

Two years ago, she would barely have been showing up at her grind of an office job and spent most of her time scheming with Paula in order to get to closer to Josh Chan. Two years ago, she wouldn’t have had the concentration, or stamina, or presence of mind to run her own business. Sure, she doesn’t know yet if she’s going to be _Rebetzel_ forever, but it’s a start of something. A new chapter of her life that she’s earned, and is not her mother’s plan of private school, law school, partner, "success" .

As she’s thinking this, Greg says “ _well, that’s not surprising – you never did seem to like it much, and you never did any work that I recall_?”

She laughs. God, can he still read her mind?

* * *

Greg is having a good time. A better time, he wagers, than if he’d stayed at the reunion. He’d forgotten how much he enjoyed just simply hanging out with Rebecca. None of the romantic intensity or drama, just the easy back and forth of banter between them.

Even when he admits that it’s not the first time he’s been back into town since he left, and she looks momentarily hurt, can’t dampen his buzz. He decides to tell her. Two years of soul-searching and truth-telling at AA meetings has at least helped with that. No more, “Mr Showing my Feelings will Ruin Everything.”

“… _you and I used to like each other. We were friends_ ” he finishes, evenly, with a small smile.

Rebecca nods her head quickly in agreement. “ _Yeah, and I would love to have that with you again_ …”

But she looks conflicted, a little crease of concern crossing her face. She starts to air her doubts, she wants to be friends again, badly, she does, but she’s doing something where she’s trying to tie up loose ends, get things off her chest and there’s something she’s got tell him.

Greg cuts her off. “ _Let’s not do that_ …”

He doesn’t want to have difficult conversations or bring the drama back into their dynamic. The last time he’d seen Rebecca had been one of the most dramatic moments of his life. And leaving her tear-stained face behind had been one of the most difficult. He never expected to be the kind of guy that girls ran through the airport for (and of course in a way it had flattered him deeply) … but if he hadn’t left, where would they be now? Certainly, not here, having an almost-normal friendly conversation in Rebecca’s new place of business.

He sees the bottom of a bottle and does not want to hear a confession from her from something that happened in the past, probably related to Josh Chan. Also, he knows she’s had a rough time while he’s been gone but they’re even now, she doesn’t need to apologize.

Rebecca continue staring at him, slowly, starting to get it. “… _like pretend we’re meeting for the first time_?”

“ _Exactly_.”

She grins, looking thoughtful for a beat, before extending her hand out towards him.

“ _Hello, nice to meet you. I’m Rebecca_.”

* * *

She’s enjoying running with the bit, not exactly un-noticing that their references are getting increasingly flirty, as she slips in mentions to their old sex life. Greg is right there with her, a familiar glint in his eye as he refers to a particular occasion with some arrabiata sauce. She winces and laughs, but then pulls back, remembering that a few nights later had been Jayma’s wedding and that she’d slept with Josh and then Greg had gone AWOL, then punched a wall and then their whole painful conversation at the duck pond.

“ _Tell him I’m sorry_ ”

He holds her gazes and looks honestly at her before they smile softly at each other.

“ _Tell her I am too_.”

And then they are back into easy mode, joking and enjoying catching up with one another, Rebecca also enjoying the feeling of Greg watching her work. It’s a role reversal of the past, she notes. Now she's behind the counter and he's the one on the other side.

This continues until Greg suddenly says, “ _hey, there is one thing from our past that I’ve been really angry about_.”

Rebecca freezes, trying not to look too panicked, a million awkward scenarios running through her mind. Including Marco, which makes her shudder and realize she hasn’t dealt with that nugget of information yet.

But it’s okay for now, Greg is only referring to fact that she once claimed her favourite president was Rutherford B. Hayes.

She laughs in relief, and in recollection of the conversation. She’d let herself forget about the first part of their first, well actually second, date. Ever since Greg had left, she’d tried to lock him up in the part of her mind labelled “the past” and if she’d fleetingly thought about him, she’d tried to concentrate on the bad stuff. His alcoholism, him ghosting her for two weeks, his despondency at working at Home Base, in an effort to convince herself that him leaving was for the best.

Now, she remembers back to the early part of the Taco Festival date. The way they’d bonded over him being the only person to really get her obsession with the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, and the way she’d felt secure enough with him to slowly open about her relationship with her absent father.

She feels that warmth again.

Especially, later, when he tells her his girlfriend is now his ex and that he hadn’t felt the same way about her as he had in the past. He says this with a look of heavy significance that does not escape Rebecca.

She needs to speak to Paula. Why isn't she replying?

* * *

Greg knows he should leave but can’t bring himself to, the pending conversation with Marco looking less and less appealing by the minute. It’s pretty obvious Rebecca feels the same way, given the transparent way she’d “accidently” knocked a tray of dough off the counter in an attempt to get him to stay longer and help her. It had worked.

She’d looked a little flustered, and he’d wondered briefly if she was up to one of her old schemes, before dismissing the thought. The only scheme outcome he could calculate here was to spend more time with him, and he doesn’t mind that. If she’d been present at the reunion as part of some elaborate plan, then he’d failed to spot what was going on. She’d turned up and spoken to Heather and Valencia, and then been easily convinced by him to leave. Besides she doesn’t look very “schemey”. He thinks she looks great in the v-necked sweater that shows off some of his favourite assets, and her new longer hair is very pretty, but in the past she would have been more dressed up somehow. A flirty dress, more makeup, more… costumey?

He smiles at her, lingering by the tray of oven-ready pretzel dough, the silence between them only broken by the light twinkle of corporate background music. The music gives him a terrible idea, but then as he acts on it, perhaps it’s not so terrible after all?

Rebecca initially laughs, but then takes his hand and they dance slowly and increasingly closely together behind the counter.

He means what he says. He really had acted like a horse’s ass at Jayma’s wedding and he’s spent no small part of the last few years replaying the moments (the ones he can remember) over in his mind. If only he’d acted differently – done this – just simply slow-danced with her, how differently things might have turned out?

He can’t believe he’s getting the chance to replay the moment. There’s no self-doubt now clouding his mind as he holds Rebecca, pulling her closer to him with the hand gently resting on her waist. He rests his cheek next to her hair, inhaling her scent that he'd never quite managed to forget - the soft hint of citrus from her shampoo mingling with dusky sweetness of her perfume.

* * *

It’s not fair, Rebecca thinks.

Where had Heather and Valencia been two years ago with their opinions? Two years ago, when she’d been so confused between Josh and Greg and could have done with their determined clarity. Perhaps she could have avoided the whole cycle of the Josh engagement, wedding, non-wedding, revenge, the comedown spiral and all that entailed. Now, she has assurance that Greg is her “meant-to-be” and she can’t do anything about it because of.. well, because of Marco.

And now, Greg is here and he’s different in a good way, but still also the same in a good way, and holding her so tenderly to him. She almost laughs to think that he’d also been replaying their disastrous wedding date over in his mind, and more surprisingly, wanted to fix it. After what he’d said to her at the airport, she thought he would have filed her forever under “toxic” and “don’t go there”. She can barely believe it.

She wants to stretch out this romantic moment as long as possible, keep him here as her “meant-to-be” before he inevitably goes home and discovers the dirty truth from Marco. She knows, however, that she can’t. She can’t lead him into this falsehood of a promise of something reignited and then have Marco tell him.

He’d never speak to her again.

He might not anyway, but at least if it comes from her there’s a slight chance that he could forgive her as a friend one day. They could still have that, and now she has him back again she so wants that.

“ _I had sex with your dad_ ” she blurts out.

* * *

“ _What_?”

Greg reels in confusion, stepping away from her. He wobbles, barely listening to the unnecessary details she continues to expand on.

Disgust, panic, hurt – they all come in waves.

But then it hits him. Marco was going to tell him that night, she didn’t have to tell him but she told him anyway. She knew it. They could have had the perfect romantic fantasy evening but she chose to do the difficult thing.

She's different now. 

She’s honest now.

“You know, you’re not exactly steeped in honesty,” he’d once told her.

He looks back at her on his way out of the door. “ _You know, you think I’ve changed. Maybe we both have_.”

The feeling only lasts a second before the betrayal, disbelief, and hurt sweeps back over him. He stalks out of the building to face the worst drive home of his life.

Rebecca is left clinging onto the Rebetzel’s counter, her legs shaking with anxiety. “Hey,” she says to herself with a bite of irony. “At least now you're no longer thinking about Josh and Nathaniel ...”


	2. 409 I need some balance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Greg struggles to deal with Rebecca's bombshell and also confronts Marco.
> 
> Rebecca writes a letter and then tries to move on but the feral cats have other ideas.

Three days after the West Covina high school reunion, Rebecca stands at the entrance to Home Base and peers cautiously into the bar. After assessing the trade, she sighs in relief and then hurries to the counter, only slowing when she spots Heather’s expression.

“It’s okay, you’re safe. He’s not here.” Heather says, in a bored tone.

“What? Ha! I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m not hiding from…anyone.”

“Sure, you’re not hiding from anyone. Definitely not Greg.”

“No, I’m not. Why…” but then Rebecca gives in. “Okay, I’m not hiding per se, but I just want to give him some space, you know.”

Heather nods. “I know, it was rough having to tell him. But if it makes you feel better, he hasn’t been in her either. I expect he doesn’t want to socialize _per se_ either.”

Rebecca looks conflicted.

“I get it.” She nods. “I know I did the right thing telling him, it’s just hard. I get that I’ve got to give him space.”

She nods again as if trying to convince herself and Heather agrees with her. She has that urge again, the one from her past where she wants to stare him down, to convince him that there’s more to her than this one, admittedly, terrible mistake and that she’s not really a bad person. But she knows better than that now and knows that it won’t do any good.

“I just wish I could explain – give him the context you know.”

She sips the beer Heather's put in front of her. “I think I know what I’ve got to do,” she says after a beat, suddenly looking more sure of herself. “Yup, I’m going to write him a letter.”

Heather looks less convinced. “…okay” she says, eventually.

* * *

**Three days earlier**

By the time Greg arrives at Marco’s retirement complex he’s very much reached the anger stage of his reaction. He cuts the ignition with a sigh, resting his chin on his chest for a second, and then walks straight inside and bangs three times on Marco’s door.

“Hey, we said 9.30, right – where've you been? ” starts Marco, but then stops as he sees Greg’s face.

“Oh, shit.”

Greg pushes past him and towards the futon he had been planning to sleep on. “I’m just here to get my things,” he says, not looking at Marco.

“Look Greg, this is why I was going to tell you tonight” Marco begins again.

“Tell me what?” barks Greg, as he starts shoving his belongings into a bag. “That you had sex with my clearly emotionally unstable ex-girlfriend?”

Marco flinches and closes his eyes for a moment. “I know, son,” he says “but if you’ll just let me explain.”

Greg bristles at the use of the word _son._

“I’m really intrigued to know what kind of justification you could have for this?” he says, hotly. “What parenting technique this could be possibly considered as?”

Marco blinks. “You know I was drinking a lot, too much… I took advantage.. she was there and I..”

“I can’t listen to this right now. I don’t want _details_ ,” says Greg, holding his hands up in front of him in defense. Marco looks chastised and goes to pet one of his macaws who's unsettled by the raised voices, and is flapping aggressively.

Greg continues packing his belongings in an uncomfortable silence that’s broken only by the squawking of the bird, until a panicked look crosses his face and his eyes dart around the room.

“ _Where_ did it happen?”

“I…uh…” Marco stutters.

“Here?” Greg guesses by the look on his face. “Oh my god, dad I was going to stay here” he cries, his voice breaking. He grabs his bags and heads toward the door.

Marco sinks down into a chair. “I’m so sorry Greg” he says quietly in reply.

Just before he reaches the door Greg sees the oxygen tank, softening slightly and turning around. It's his dad, his dad with the oxygen tank and the one parent he has a relationship with.

“I just can’t right now,” he repeats. “Maybe in a few days, okay?”

As he steps outside, he pulls his phone from his pocket and searches through the contacts until he gets to “G”. “Guardrail” he selects and punches the call button.

Back inside, Marco spins a bottle of whisky in his hand, looking tortured. After a pause, he takes out his own phone, skimming through the contact until he reaches his own AA contact.

* * *

_Dear Greg,_

_I’m sorry if reading this freaks you out and I know you might not read it all and you have every right not to._

_I totally understand if you hate me, but I just wanted to give you more context about what happened between Marco and I._

_You’ve got to know that what happened was not in anyway to get revenge on you for leaving or purposely intended to hurt you. The day I ran into Marco I was at my rock bottom, which was the consequence of months of spiraling after Josh left me at the altar. I was a real mess after that and made so many bad decisions, including sleeping with my boss and trying get my revenge on Josh by ruining his reputation. All bad choices I know._

_That day basically everything finally started to unravel. Paula had uncovered some details about my past mental health issues, which I’d kept secret, and I lashed out her and Valencia and Heather when they tried to help me. Basically, I thought everyone hated me and I ended up in that bar when you used to study drink feeling so alone. And then magically you called me, and I felt so connected to you but then it was only a butt dial and I felt so alone again. Marco was in the bar and told me about you and your new girlfriend and then was nice to me and… well you can imagine how it went after that. (I’m sorry)._

_The next day I got on a plane and took some pills with some wine and ended up in hospital. After that, I got a proper diagnosis for my issues and have really been doing so much better since then. I’ve been taking my therapy seriously and just trying to make my own good decisions._

_I know none of this justifies what I did but I just wanted to explain what happened. I don’t expect you to reply or want anything from you in return._

_Greg, I am truly sorry._

_Rebecca (Bunch)._

* * *

Greg takes the letter from Heather with a puzzled look.

“It’s from Rebecca” she explains. “I’m not even sure if I should be giving it to you, but I guess I am.”

“Wow,” he says. He looks like he’s going to say something else but then slips it into his back pocket.

An hour later, he returns to Home Base and Heather immediately spots his face from the other side of the room.

“Dude?” she says, pulling him into a quiet corner. “You okay?”

Greg can barely speak; his eyes are watery, and his face looks drawn and grey. “Rebecca took some pills?” he manages to ask, quietly.

“You didn’t know?” Heather stares at him. “Greg, she tried to commit suicide. She was on a plane and they made an emergency landing and everything but she pulled through.”

He exhales, blowing out his cheeks. “I knew there was something… but woah, that… that’s a lot.”

Heather pats his arms. “It sucks. Valencia did like a million Facebook stories about it, I just figured you knew.” She stops when Greg gives her a sceptical look at the expectation he would look at any kind of online stories.

“Okay, fair. But Rebecca’s been doing much better recently, she’s been trying to work through everything that happened. Don't beat yourself up about not knowing.”

“I... Okay. Thanks Heather.” Greg nods a few times but struggles to say anything else more coherent..

“Hey, no problem. What else are bartenders for?”

He gives her a weak smile in return. “You’re telling me…”

* * *

Rebecca exits the store, digging in her bag for her car keys. When she looks up, she stops in her tracks.

Greg.

“Hey,” she says nervously, trying to smile at him. “How… how are things?”

He ignores her question. “I kinda thought I might run into you here,” he admits looking uncomfortable. “I just want you to know I got your letter.”

“Oh,” she says in reply, turning pink.

“Yeah, and so,” he continues. “Rebecca, I didn’t know what you’d been through. I’m really sorry that you went through that.” He swallows. “And, I’m sorry that I couldn’t help, that I wasn’t here.”

Rebecca shakes her head “Greg, I…”  
  


But he cuts her off. “I really don’t want to talk about the other stuff” he gestures a circle with his hand for _stuff_. “Not ready for that. But thank you, I guess, for the letter.”

He gives her the smallest of smiles, which she returns, before they part ways.

* * *

**Two weeks later**

It’s when she wakes up from a particularly vivid cat-based dream that Rebecca realizes she needs to get laid again. Or, more importantly, that she wants to.

She’s spent much of the last couple of weeks mainly hiding at home when she’s not been working at Rebetzel’s. Partly because she’s been trying to avoid Greg, she’ll admit that (although she prefers to look at it as ‘giving him space’) and also to recalculate her feelings about Josh and Nathaniel. Luckily, Josh has been competing in some kind of karate tournament so hasn’t been around the house much.

In conclusion, she resolved to move on, as she tells Valencia at the gym she rejoins as part of her 'kick the exes' campaign.

“ _I need someone who is not one of my exes or a murderer_.”

She feels like things are looking up when she swipes right again with Jason (the non-murder) on Tindr and lines up a date.

Therapy, spin classes, Rebetzel’s and a date with a hot guy with no baggage? If she didn’t know better, she’d say she was making healthy choices.

* * *

Across town, Greg also resurfaces. He moves out of the motel he’s been camped at for a week or so and moves in with Whi-Jo. He contemplates moving back to Atlanta, but realizes he came home for a reason and doesn’t want anything to make him run away.

At Whi-Jo’s recommendation, he also joins a gym, and has to admit that getting the adrenaline pumping actually does make him feel better.

He even makes a new friend. Nathaniel isn’t the kind of guy that he would usually befriend per se, but then again, he doesn’t usually go to the gym.

Greg recognizes something in Nathaniel. There’s a familiar sadness around the eyes, and although Nathaniel is clearly very at home in the gym, there’s a heaviness in the way he works through his routine that makes Greg suspect he’s trying to take his mind off something.

So, when they end up hanging out and going for a drink, Greg is not reluctant. That’s when it comes out. Bingo. They both have messy histories with exes that they both are clearly not over yet.

* * *

Of course, things never do go that smoothly for Rebecca. She has an unproblematic date with a guy she’s into arranged, and of course she has to get a yeast infection. An inconveniently pungent yeast infection.

“It’ll be okay, just reschedule” Valencia tells her in a roundabout way. “Shit happens and you can deal with it.”

Rebecca isn’t convinced, she’s having weirdly vivid dreams about feral cats, and although she doesn’t believe in signs any more, she can’t help the feeling that something is trying to tell her… something.

So, it’s to her surprise when Jason agrees to reschedule, and things go well. Things are going very well... She’s very much enjoying the making out on the bed when they are disturbed by noises on the patio. Not those feral cats again, surely?

It’s Nathaniel and Greg. Wait…what?!

It’s less of surprise when Josh appears, given their roommate status, but why is Nathaniel here? And Greg? She hasn’t seen him since their brief encounter at the market, but he’s the last person she expected to turn up at her door.

She knows seeing him again that there is still a lot unsaid between them, but now is not the time for this. Not when she’s making out with Jason, and Nathaniel and Josh are right there too.

How did everything get so complicated again so quickly?

She can tell there some anger bristling within Greg but he doesn’t shout or even speak it out loud. Instead he opens his mouth and then quickly shuts it again, looking down at his feet. It’s left to Nathaniel to fill in the silence, indignantly gesturing towards Josh and his man panties.

Greg only springs to life when it comes out that she and Josh are living together.

“What?” he asks, his hard “t” reverberating around the patio.

“ _Just as friends_ ” she hurriedly clarifies, but now Greg’s eyes won’t stop boring into her, trying to make sense of this, admittedly, bizarre scenario. Whatever he came over to say has evidently now dissipated, and she tries to communicate some meaning at him with her eyes, before he follows Nathaniel out of the yard.

Jason leaves also, looking confused, leaving Rebecca stood with only Josh, his ridiculous panties, and her racing thoughts for company.


	3. 410 I can work with you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Marco be able to repair his relationship with Greg?
> 
> Rebecca's plan for a quiet evening of babysitting doesn't go to plan when Greg arrives to reconnect.

Rebecca takes the freshly cooked batch of pretzels out of the oven and inhales the warm, doughy scent. They smell like trash, she thinks, nodding knowingly to herself. Figures.

Her mood is hovering around blue today and she feels a small sense of achievement in the fact she’s managed to drag her ass out of bed and into Rebetzel’s. If she’d still be a Whitefeather/Mountaintop employee, today would definitely have been a day for a sick day (read “personal disaster” day).

“ _They’re garbage… like my life_ ,” she reiterates about the pretzels to Darryl later as he spits one out into a napkin.

Her nods sympathetically at her, while simultaneously letting her know he’s heard all about her patio run-in with Jason, Josh, Nathaniel, and Greg.

Rebecca groans. She’s sent a couple of texts to Jason since the aforementioned patio evening and got one back about “too much drama”. She hadn’t bothered to follow up on that one, distracted by the reemergence of Nathaniel and Greg.

“ _They both clearly had something super important to tell me, but I never found out what it was. And I keep texting both of them and it’s radio silence…”_

Darryl looks vaguely concerned but tries to keep his face neutral.

If she’s completely honest with herself, she can hazard a guess at what Nathaniel might have been going to say. He’d never been shy about declaring his feelings to her, and had the capacity to keep coming back no matter how many times she tried to reject him. She winces a little, remembering her last rejection after she'd discovered that he'd been plotting with her younger brother.

“ _The way you show your love is messed up. I just don’t think you understand me_ …”

The look on his face had seemed like he was at last starting to really listen to her and his behaviour appeared to have changed since then. She ponders whether she’d react so harshly to his advances if he made them again now…?

Greg is more of a mystery to her. He’d always had the capacity to surprise her and she finds herself agitated to know what he’s thinking. Or, at least what he had been thinking before he turned up to find three other men at her porch (not a euphemism).

Three other men including Josh Chan. Josh Chan, the cause of so many dumpster fires between her and Greg in the past. She hopes that Greg had been able to read on her face that it wasn’t like _that_ for her with Josh anymore. She’d felt his eyes, particularly, burning into her that night and hopes he knew that she was sincere then when she described herself and Josh as platonic.

She’s reminded of when she bumped into Greg at the market after writing him the letter a week or so ago. He’d looked freaked out, of course, but there’d been an unexpected softness in his eyes, also. A softness that was very much like the softness tinged with pain in his eyes when he’d said, “of course I love you” two years ago at the airport.

She finds herself slipping into a comforting daydream of hope, but then Marco, and Jason, and Nathaniel, and Josh in his man panties all come crashing back into her mind, and her despondency returns.

Darryl is still staring pointedly at her but she doesn’t want to tell her any of this, so she searches desperately for a distraction.

“ _Whose baby is that crying_?”

And, oh shit, it’s Hebecca, the baby she had a part in bringing into this world, and in the next moment she’s agreeing to babysit so Darryl can go on a date night.

She looks skeptically over at Hebecca perched on Darryl's knee. Babysitting should be a good distraction, right? And it’d be a nice thing for her to do for Darryl. Doing nice things for friends is a healthy person thing to do, right?

It’ll be one evening free of drama at least.

* * *

_Oh god_. Greg takes an extra large gulp of his bitter coffee as he sees Marco slink into the room.

“I can’t even get some space at AA?” he mutters to himself before taking a seat and deliberately avoiding Marco’s eyeline.

He sinks further into his seat when Marco stands up and begins to apologize to him. Again. Despite his protestations, Marco continues….

“ _It was my rock bottom and I’m ashamed_ …”

Greg tries to cut him off . 

“ _Please dad, you just don’t need to apologize anymore_.”

He means it. He’s had three weeks now to process the Marco and Rebecca situation, and after three weeks of not being able to think of anything else, right now he’d like to think about literally anything else.

After he’d stormed out of Marco’s retirement apartment that night, he’d holed up in a grim West Covina motel for a couple of days and purposefully ignored all of Marco’s calls and messages. It’d taken another two days for him to bear to meet him again in person.

Then Marco sat in front of him on the edge of the motel bed, and Greg sat on the uncomfortable desk chair determined not to speak first. Unfortunately, the awkward silence only drew more attention to the ragged gasps of Marco’s breathing before he spoke, and Greg felt the old familiar itch to take care of his father.

So, he hears Marco’s story. About how after Greg left his drinking, lifestyle, and diet got worse. He may have encouraged Greg to take positive action in his own life but he evidently hadn’t followed that advice for himself.

“And, I’m not telling you this so feel bad Greg, I’m just trying to be honest, but I’ve got to admit I resented you as well. You did what I’ve never been able to do myself. Moving on, cleaning myself up, quitting booze. I was proud of ya too… but it also twisted the knife that it was too late for me.”

Greg stays silent for a moment, before managing to stammer, “Dad, it’s really not like that.”

His head is swimming. Now he feels guilt mixing in with all the other emotions currently crowding his brain. He’d moved on to help himself, but he hadn’t realized that two of the people he cared about the most in the world had been struggling through some of the worst periods of their lives. And then, in a bleak twist of fate, they’d come crashing together with horrendous consequences.

If only he’d been here, perhaps he could have stopped things…? But no, he can’t think like that. I’ve he’d have been here, he would still have been an alcoholic mess and shit would have still gone down in some other unforeseen and complicated way.

He'd had to clean himself up before he could have been any us to anyone else, he tries to convince himself. 

Biting his lip, he balls his fists but continues listening to Marco.

Over the next few weeks, he sees that although Marco’s emphysema is still bad he really is striving to do better for himself. No more drinking, no more lard, more exercise and more AA meetings.

Yet, now he’s continually crashing Greg’s AA meetings and Greg has to make it stop. He’s not forgiven Marco yet, but he can deal with him now, and he needs to stop hearing him talk about what he did. Everyone else in the room looks bored as well. They’ve all had their own rock bottoms. Most were worse than this.

“ _I know you’re sorry and so does everyone from last week who was also here. So please, you just don’t have to apologize anymore, okay_.”

Hearing it all from Marco’s point of view has made him think more about Rebecca. How Marco could’ve taken advantage of her own vulnerability. He got her letter, of course, but they haven’t spoken about any of it and all those things he’d felt about her in Rebetzel’s at the reunion hadn't just vanished.

When Guardrail says after the meeting, “ _Greg, if you’ve got something to say to Rebecca, you’ve got to say it_ ,” he realizes he’s right. He missed the chance to say something to Rebecca once before and it basically ruined everything. He screwed up big time. 

He cringes thinking back to Philip and Jayma's wedding - well, the parts he can remember through the alcoholic fug. He’s not going to do that again.

He doesn’t know what he’s going to say exactly but he’s going to say _something_.

* * *

Earlier, Greg had been sat at WhiJo’s mulling over his conversation with Guardrail. He knew he’d felt things for Rebecca in Rebetzel’s, and if he was completely honest with himself, he’d come back to West Covina with the hope of maybe seeing her again. Since he’d finished things with his ex, he’d been less careful with his plans when back home. It’s not like he was going to _arrange_ to meet Rebecca, but he wasn’t going deliberately out of his way to _not_ see her like he had been on his previous trips.

He twists his phone from hand to hand and WhiJo stares over at him, suspiciously.

“What’s up, bud?”

“Oh, nothing” Greg replies carefully. “Just more Marco drama, you know.”

Whi-Jo yikes in response but says no more. 

It had all been going well with his ex, normal, refreshingly no drama, until she’d said “I love you” and Greg had panicked. At first, he thought it’d had been his usual cold feet and commitment issues until his brain recalled that the last time he’d told someone he loved them had been at LAX and had been Rebecca Bunch.

“ _Of course I love you…_ ”

Ouch. The memory still hurts. 

He’d said it then and meant it but it hadn’t been enough of a reason for him to stay in West Covina and keep screwing everything up. So, he’d got himself away and moved on, but it hadn’t meant he’d stopped caring about her. It wasn't that simple. 

This crystallizes for him one day - the day after Aimee said “I love you” to him. He’d been stood watching her run some dishes under the tap – she liked to do them straight after eating – and puzzling at his own reluctance to say it back.

She flipped a strand of her long dark blonde hair over her shoulder, about to turn, and then Greg knew that instead he would prefer a bouncy mess of brown curls and when she did turn he’d prefer a pair of vivid green eyes looking at him with puzzled amusement. Turns out Rebecca was embedded further in his psyche than he’d thought.

Trying to bury these feelings, he’d approached Aimee and wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing his lips against her neck. She smiled, leaning back into him until he moved his hands further up towards her chest and she froze.

“Not here, Greg” she’d said with a stilted giggle and pushed him away.

He was considering if she’d somehow read his mind and thoughts about another woman, when he remembered her recent unwillingness to show intimacy outside the bedroom. He tries not to hold this against her, with her face when he didn’t “I love you back” appearing in his mind.

“It’s not sanitary,” she’d explained, starting to dry the dishes on the rack. She frowned slightly.

“So, did you get your tickets back home for Thanksgiving yet?”

Greg had sighed. He heard the frustration in her voice. Things in Atlanta with Aimee had been great but for some unknown reason whenever he’d tried to talk to her about West Covina it had led to a disagreement or argument.

“Everyone has issues with their families, Greg. You’re really weird about that place.”

He knew he wasn’t being fair to her, comparing her to Rebecca, and knew her words held some truth, but he also knew it just wasn’t going to work... 

And now, six weeks later, he finds himself outside Daryll’s apartment needing to talk to Rebecca again.

* * *

He counts to ten before he knocks on the door and hopes he’s managed to rearrange his features into something resembling calm, but he needn’t have worried as when Rebecca opens the door he’s instantly pulled into her whirlwind of panic and disarray.

Despite Rebecca’s general air of drama, and the screaming cries of Darryl’s baby, Greg finds himself immediately drawn to her. As much as he wants to calm Rebecca, he can’t hep noticing how her fluffy pink sweater suits her, and in her look in general there’s an honesty and naturalness of manner that wasn’t always there before.

He listens to her rant for a while before he decides it’s probably easier to relax Rebecca by calming the baby first.

However, his immediate settling of Hebecca sends Rebecca further into the spiral, talking her failure to calm the baby as an emblematic sign of failure for everything in her life.

“ _You left West Covina just to get away from me and look how well you’re doing. Clearly, everyone is better off without me, just face it_.”

When she brings him into her diatribe Greg knows he can stop that – he can prove that that part at least isn't true.

“ _Rebecca, stop. If everyone is better off without you then why did I come here to tell you that I can’t stop thinking about you, and I miss you and I still have feelings for you_?”

She blinks in surprise.

Wow, thinks Greg. That was uncharacteristically spontaneous of me.

But, wildly, she feels the same and way and then she’s stepping towards him and they’re pressing together in a kiss that feels at the same time familiar and different, yet ultimately passionate and urgent.

Despite the urgency, Rebecca is pulling away, not because she doesn’t appreciate the kiss but because she needs to stop and check what’s going on with herself. This makes it even better somehow, because kissing Rebecca was always amazing, but kissing a self-aware, healthy Rebecca is even more so.

The kissing resumes, Greg’s hands knot furiously through her hair like they always did, and it’s passionate and romantic, and he realizes that this is it. This is definitely what he has been missing. It wasn’t the alcohol and self-sabotage that had made it so potent before. It was Rebecca herself, and it’s clear now that their chemistry doesn't need booze or regret to ignite it.

He kisses the part of her neck that she always liked and she arches towards him, and then they’re on the floor, because of course they end up on the floor. Rolling around on the floor is what they do.

* * *

Later, Rebecca pauses and holds Greg’s gaze.

“I missed you too,” she says gently.

He smiles softly back at her. “I’m… I’m sorry I wasn’t here.”

“I know” she replies, but then she rolls over and runs her hand down his torso because there will be plenty of time for talking later.

* * *

Afterwards, Rebecca wonders if Greg might panic and bolt like he had done in the past but no, he stays in her arms, smiling right back at her laughing at however they ended up here.

She feels warm inside.

“ _Hey, I don’t want to mess this up_ ” she admits. “ _I still have a teeny, tiny tendency to miss things up_.”

“ _So, what? We both do, so does everyone_ ,” he replies in a measured tone.

She continues smiling at him.

“ _So, you think we can start again for the_ ….”

“…80th time?” he finishes, with a laugh.

Then he gives her a serious look and she knows they’re on the same page. How on earth had the Greg Serrano she’d known become so calm and self-assured. They’ve been together for one evening and are already talking in roundabout terms about a relationship and he looks completely at ease.

He’d always been wise and ahead of people in deducing reality, she recalls, but now there was something different about him. He no longer had that look of fear about him, the look of fear that he’s about it screw everything up.

It makes her feel more confident too, and when Hebecca starts crying again, she stops Greg from rising to her, and puts a hand on his chest.

“ _No, I’ll go_ ” she says, calmly.

* * *

She’s talking to Paula later about their encounter (she’s not making the mistake of keeping it from Paula this time) and summarizes, “ _Greg makes me feel… like... I’m okay… and like maybe we could be the best versions of ourselves if we’re together_.”

She doesn’t know what this means exactly, but she’s excited to find out. As she swills the red wine around in her glass, she delights in the knowledge that Greg is across town minding a baby (that’s a cute enough thought in itself) and he’s doing it for her, and will be there waiting for her return.

She can’t wait to see him again but also knows there’s no rush.

Paula sees her expression and clinks her glass against Rebecca’s.

“Here’s to us both, Cookie,” she smiles.


	4. 411 I'm almost over you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nu Rebecca and Nu Greg are back together as a couple and are "taking things slow" - but are they? Some relationship fluff and fun that we didn't see on screen.
> 
> Plus Greg has questions about Josh Chan and they both think about Emory and the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AKA Nathaniel's rom-com dream episode. This was one fun to write as the only episode scenes were the bookends so I could fill in (e.g. totally make up the stuff!) in between.

Rebecca is technically at work, but she isn’t working. Instead, she sits at a customer table facing Greg, somewhat nervous.

It’s the first time she’s seen him since the night “babysitting” at Darryl’s, and she’s relieved to get to talk to him in person. The 200 WhatsApp messages they’ve exchanged since then don’t theoretically count although she has been impressed by his technical verbosity. She knew he could send a dirty text including emojis but who would have thought Greg Serrano would know how to gif?

“… _gotta say, sex with you while sober - delightful_ ” he quips with a familiar glint in his eye.

This and his hand so close to hers emboldens her and she decides to bite the bullet.

“ _Okay, let’s get this over with. What are we doing and what do we think this is_?”

To her relief he doesn’t flinch.

“ _I’m actually glad you mentioned that because I think that since I’m in recovery and you’re in treatment – that we should really_ …”

“… _take it slow_!” she jumps in, excited to be on the same wavelength.

A new boyfriend to her seems… a lot, right now. But this new, steady version of Greg she can deal with. Plus, she wants to kiss him again – and do other things that’ll they’ll no doubt get to later. The sober sex was just as good as she remembered, but also better, because they’d felt more connected. Like she’d removed a barrier and had his full attention.

She likes this a lot, she realizes. Previously, she’d always had to hang around at Homebase when she wanted to see Greg, but now he’s willingly come to her place of work, and when he jokingly wonders if they can kiss in public she doesn’t care. There’s no game to play anymore and she leans over, firmly pressing her mouth against his.

He tastes the same, but it’s coffee instead of an alcohol background now and she sighs and opens her mouth, sliding her tongue across his, but then AJ loudly clears his throat from behind the counter, interrupting the moment.

“Oops” she snickers, resting her forehead on Greg’s. “Perhaps I should get back to work…?”

“Nah” Greg replies. “You have minions now… what else are minions for?”

“True, true, this is true” she laughs and takes a tight grasp of his hand.

She doesn’t even notice Nathaniel looking over enviously at them from behind the security desk.

* * *

Rebecca can’t sleep. She lies propped up on one elbow and stares at Greg who is soundly asleep on his back next to her, one arm stretched towards her and the other clutching the sheet over his chest.

His cheeks are flushed, his lips parted and his hair a mess of dark curls against the pillow.

She smiles at him and has the sudden urge to try and capture this moment. Partly to try and capture the feeling of a billion butterflies racing around her stomach, and partly because he looks angelic and sweet and he’d hate that. She grins, thinking of showing it to him at a later point, and the ensuing look on his face.

But it’s dark in the bedroom and if she puts the flash on it’ll surely wake him and ruin the moment, so she hesitates. It’s while she’s puzzling out the logistics that she gets second thoughts. Maybe this behavior is straying from “affectionate girlfriend” into a familiar obsessive streak and she knows she needs to nip that in the bud.

She places her phone back on the bedside table, decisively, and the noise disturbs Greg.

“Whats's going on? Wassa matter?” he murmurs, sleepily.

“Oh, it’s nothing. Go back to sleep” she instructs him, gently.

“Okay,” he replies, agreeably, and rolls over closer to her, his outstretched arm now resting against the top of her arm.

She lies still for a few moments, simply enjoying the warmth and his closeness, but then shifts slightly so his hand falls into the tight cleavage of her nightdress. Enjoying the sensation, she rocks a little to create friction, before rolling over closer to him and hitching a leg across his body.

“Mmmm?” Greg murmurs and his eyelashes flutter.

Rebecca leans over and kisses him softly on the lips, pressing her body firmly against his, but he’s still too asleep for anything to progress further.

“Hey, Greg” she whispers after another moment’s silence.

He finally opens his eyes and looks over at her, blinking as his eyes adjust to the dark room. “Err…wha iisit?”

“Okay, since you’re now awake…” she begins, eagerly, sitting up.

“Yes, since I _now_ am.”

She ignores this. “I guess I just wanted to chat more about the elephant in the room. Well, I guess there are a few elephants,but in this case I mean the Josh-specific shaped elephant.”

“Really, um now?” Greg yawns, but then sits up a little. “Okay Bunch, I guess I’m not going back to sleep, so let’s do this.”

Rebecca’s eyes are large and shiny even in the dark. “Like, I know it’s weird that we’re living together…”

Greg nods.

“…and I know you know about the almost wedding.”

He nods again, hoping she can see this in the dark.

“But after that I went to a really dark place.” She sighs and brings the blanket up under her chin and Greg places a warm hand on her knee.

“Like, I just really wanted to hurt him and make him pay, and everything went really far and I made loads of terrible decisions like trying to hurt his family and following him, and sleeping with Nathaniel when he was seeing someone else, and um, also maybe giving Darryl my egg wasn’t the wisest decision I’ve ever made.”

She stops for breath and Greg exhales looking bamboozled but thoughtful. This is a more reflective Rebecca than he's used to and he wants to be supportive even if he's still struggling with sleep.

“Anyway, I’m getting off track… after I woke up in the hospital and had some time to figure things out, I realized that I’d been putting so much on Josh. And that he really wasn’t the point of everything at all.”

“I’m glad of that, it sounds very wise.” Greg adds, gently.

“But then he forgive me and was really kind, actually, and he needed somewhere to stay, and I guess I kinda thought us roomying together platonicly was in a weird way a good way to show I was over that whole…thing?”

Greg rubs his hand against his face but keeps the other hand on his knee and Rebecca takes it and holds it between both of hers.

“Does that make sense”?

“Kinda…” he agrees. “I mean, honestly, I’d rather you weren’t living with Chan but I get that nothing’s going on”.

“I know, and I know how it must have looked after you left and everything I said at the airport and then I was getting engaged to him like a month later.” She grasps his hand tighter.

“Hey, I left,” he says, a little unsure.

Rebecca sighs and shakes her head. “I’d just spent so long obsessing over him and I knew deep down, I guess, that it wasn’t real, and then when we got together it felt so different, like I had proper feelings but then after Jayma’s wedding…”

She stops.

“Hey” says Greg, sitting up properly now. “Rebecca it was real. I felt those things too but I messed up.That was on me.”

“I know, but it felt like I tried something that was a better idea for me that Josh and then it didn’t work out and then I guess I thought… well maybe it was meant to be Josh after all…”

She looks sad and Greg pulls her into his arms. “You know, I’m not sure it’s ever _meant_ to be anyone,” he whispers into the top of her head.

She sighs in a semi-agreement and he adds “…and you know I am sorry that I wasn’t here.”

“No,” she says, more firmly. “I’m glad that you weren’t here to see everything… and I’d have probably dragged you into something awful. Well, more awful than Marco.”

“Hey” Greg interrupts her. “I puked on my cat multiple times and wrecked several vehicles, not all of which were mine. It probably wouldn’t have shocked me.”

Rebecca laughs weakly. “But your dad…” and then Greg cuts her off again.

“Can I propose something? How about we agree not to mention my dad, or Josh come to think of it, in bed ever again?”

Rebecca gives an awkward giggle of acknowledgement before settling down against his chest and drifting off to sleep. This time it’s Greg left awake and staring at the ceiling. But he can hear Rebecca’s heartbeat rhythmically thudding against him and he’s comfortable.

* * *

The next morning Rebecca wakes first and is haphazardly pouring cereal into a couple of bowls when Greg enters in the kitchen rubbing his eyes.

“Wow, you made breakfast,” he sleepily smirks with a gentle edge of tease.

“Haha,” she deadpans in return. “So, I see you still do morning well, Serrano?” she kisses him and tugs at his shirt which he’s put on inside out.

He shrugs. “Shhh, need coffee” and then he starts searching around the kitchen for mugs. Rebecca watches him for a moment in silence, enjoying the way he is still comfortable making himself at home in her space.

“Soo, what’s your plan today then?” she asks after a moment.

“Coffee then study.” Greg replies from inside a cupboard.

She smiles. “Great, that’s a great plan.”

Pause.

“I was thinking… maybe you could do it here?”

Greg looks at her a little sceptically. “Hmm, on the one hand I feel like you might have a grand distraction plan, but on the other hand it is pretty cramped round at Whi-Jo’s...”

Rebecca affects a mock hurt expression and puts her hand to her chest. “Moi? I shan’t because I shall in fact also be busy doing these.” She pulls a stuffed binder and BDP workbook across towards the bench towards them.

He raises an eyebrow. “Also, Whi-Jo and his new boyfriend do seem to spend a lot of time doing exercise over there. A weird amount considering he works in a gym, actually. So much squatting and crunching.”

“Gross” Rebecca agrees scrunching up her face. “I can promise you there will be none of that here. Anyway, I won’t distract you as I have so many plans with these babies.” She clutches a pack of colored gel pens to her chest, lovingly, and Greg laughs and slides a coffee over to her.

“Okay, you win – let’s do this” he grins and takes out his laptop from his bag and they sit next to each other, both concentrating on their own things until Rebecca has to leave to head to Rebetzel’s.

* * *

“Serrano!” calls Whi-Jo as soon as Greg puts his key on the door later on that day.

“Oh, hey” Greg replies, walking into the kitchen to find Whi-Jo throwing ingredients into a blender.

“Haven’t seen you around much buddy? Spending all your time with Rebecca I’m guessing?”

Greg doesn’t answer but grins as Whi-Jo switches on the blender.

“Must be pretty cosy over there with you her and Josh, right?” he continues, raising an eyebrow.

“Well… not really.” Greg answers, rubbing the back of his neck. “Chan hasn’t been around much, actually – a lot of karate and I think he works late these days?”

“Oh, yeah, the dancing and the dj-ing and errr the... well, the stripping.”

Greg does a double-take. “The _what_ now? Woah, I really have been out of town a long time, huh?”

“Hmmm” WhiJo responds. 

“Hmmm?” Greg mimics. “Does that hmm contain an element of your classic judginess?” 

Whi-Jo sits and faces him. “I just think you can’t avoid talking to him forever. Especially because we’re all buds y’know.”

Greg sighs. “I get it, but I just don’t really have the time to get into it right now. I’m with Rebecca and I’m studying and I’ve got things to sort out with Marco and my mom.”

“Uh-huh” says WhiJo and looks thoughtful for moment, idly flexing a bicep, before adding “Do you wanna come for a run?”

“Do I want to … yeah, sure. Wait, no, I do not want to come for a run with you.”

Greg laughs and pulls out his laptop and Whi-Jo grins and heads to the door. “Yeah, I guess you’ve got a lot to sort before you go back to Atlanta, right?”

Whi-Jo leaves and Greg is left in silence staring at this laptop; the idea of returning to Atlanta running through his mind. Everything had happened so fast since his return but he knows February and the return date will come around fast. It might just be the sentiment of the holidays, but he’s feeling more positive about West Covina than he ever has, well, in his life before. He realizes he’s missed Whi-Jo and Hector more than he’d considered possible before he went. The dry heat of California is admittedly a sweet relief from the relentless humidity of Georgia, and, God, he’s even looking forward to going to the beach to watch Hector in a surf competition in a few days. What’s happening to him??! 

* * *

Rebecca returns from Rebetzel’s a couple of evenings later to find Greg in her kitchen.

“Hey you” she beams through her surprise, putting her bag down. “What’s going on?”

“Oh hey” he says, looking inside a drawer. “Have you guys got any nutmeg?”

Rebecca laughs and puts her head on one side. “Errrr, I’m guessing not.”

“By the way, Hector and Josh were here earlier and let me in. Hope that’s okay” Greg adds, leaning over and kissing her.

“Sure,” she replies “But what’s going on here” she gestures around at the kitchen activity in front of her. Greg has bowls and mixers and a cookie sheet involved. “I thought I was the baker in this relationship??”

He scoffs gently . “I just wanted to do something nice if that’s okay with you? And I kinda got into cooking again in Atlanta. A lot more free time in the evening when not drinking it turns out. ”

Rebecca’s face breaks out into a smile of surprise and she walks around the counter to put her arms around his waist.

“Also,” he adds. “I had a hankering for biscotti and..."

He pauses.

" I’ve kinda been thinking about what I’m going to do with this business degree when I finally get it.”

“Oh yeah?” she asks and buries her head into his shoulder. Her heart beats faster now – talking about Greg finishing his degree reminds her that he’ll be going back to Atlanta in a couple of months and she’s not sure she’s ready to _really_ talk about that yet. Or even think about it.

Instead, she spins Greg around and pulls his face down to meet hers. “I love it” she smiles into his mouth before kissing him hard.

Greg leans into the kiss and then picks her up and places her on the countertop. She wraps her legs around him, pulling him closer but then the oven pings and he gently pushes her away.

“Gotta get these out” he says, opening the door and placing the sheet on the side next to her. “Careful, you’ll burn those dainty fingers” he adds, wafting Rebecca with a teatowel as she picks one up.

She doesn’t take her eyes of him as she brings it to her mouth and slowly blows on it before taking a purposely messy bite and letting the crumbs fall into her cleavage.

“Oops” she crows and runs her finger under her blouse and then brings it back up to her lips with a mischievous smile.

Greg is back in front of her in seconds. “Oh, it’s like that is it?” he asks and Rebecca practically purrs in response. He kisses her again hungrily with over her face and necks with his hands in her hair. She arches her back to further expose her neck to his kisses and pulls him as close to her as she can manage with her legs.

He’s already undone every button on her blouse, kissing the exposed skin as he goes, when he pauses and looks towards the door.

“Soo… you’re sure Josh is out for the evening, right?”

“Yup,” she breathes, pulling him impatiently back towards her by his belt loops, starting to unbuckle his belt. “Some big family festival or something.”

Greg looks down at her and grins, pausing his hand over her bra. “Family festival??”

“What?” she asks, breathlessly. “I’m not Catholic. All I know is it’s some festival and he’s staying over at the Chans' tonight.”

Greg’s voice drops an octave. “Great” he whispers. “Because you know I like to get to work in the kitchen.”

She falls into him with something that is half gasp and half laugh and kisses him hard on the mouth. He returns the kiss, smiling, and shifts her up with one hand, while slipping the other hand under her skirt, removing her underwear with one clean movement.

**[End scene]**

* * *

The next morning Rebecca wakes up to find herself pleasingly and distractingly naked. She rolls over, stretching her arm out to find Greg and realizes instead that she’s groping air.

Surprised, she sits up and looks around the room. “Greg?” she calls, tentatively.

He returns to the bedroom with a mug of coffee in his hand for her.

“Ohh,” she says in relief. “I thought you’d left.”

“No, hey – I wouldn’t do that” he says, kissing her and perching on the bed next to her. His eyes drift down to her chest where the sheet has slipped down to her waist and sighs. “But I do have to leave”.

“Oh” she replies, trying not to let her face fall. “Where are you going?” she asks in a small voice.

“To see my mom, actually”

“Oh,” she repeats in surprise. She barely even remembers Greg has a mom.

“Yeah well it’s the holidays and I kinda didn’t see her at all last year and maybe I’m trying to improve things there.” He looks bashful but Rebecca looks impressed.

“Her pre-christmas lunch is still totally tacky and tasteless – you’d probably love it - but I didn’t really think bringing you would go with our whole ‘take things slow’ we’ve got going…so you know, aaah, um am I babbling?”

“No, absolutely” Rebecca agrees with a genuine smile and puts her hand on his arm. “Anyway, I’m working at 11.30 and I’ve got some more workbook to do before then. You know how it is.”

“Great” Greg leans over to kiss her, getting off the bed and slipping his jacket on, humming as he does so. When he looks back at Rebecca, she’s watching him with a somewhat wistful look on her face.

“We could catch a movie later if you’re free?” he can’t help adding and she lights up in response. He moves towards her again and rubs the back of his thumb over her exposed nipple, which has again escaped the cover of the sheet.

“And after that, some other things…?” he suggests with a bite of his lower lip.

Rebecca half-giggles in response but this time he does get up and leave. As the door to the apartment slams shut she falls back against her pillow with a dreamy sigh. She looks over to the workbook on her dresser knowing that she should get up and make a start on her latest exercise, but staying in bed and replaying the events of the night before over and over in her head is far more appealing for her. It could get x-rated...

It’s an hour later when she finally sits up with a start. Swearing, she reaches out for her phone and agitatedly dials Dr Akopian.

“Hiii, Dr Akopian” she chirps. “I need to rearrange our appointment for tonight.”

“No, nothing’s wrong – everything is really great, actually – it’s just something’s come up.”

* * *

It’s the following day and Greg is practically walking on air.

He’d left Rebecca’s apartment again and headed straight to the gym and now the endorphins are pumping around his bloodstream.

“Huh, Whi-Jo was really was right all along about working out” he thinks to himself, begrudgingly.

As he walks, he reflects on how well everything seems to be going for him and how unusual that feels. Returning to West Covina hasn’t had an adverse effect on his sobriety, his relationship with his mom is better it has been, well, ever and things with Rebecca are going great. He’s also just received grades back from his latest assignment which have significantly improved his chances of finishing in the top 5 % of his class. (He can’t wait to tell Rebecca this last part). 

Thinking about Atlanta puts a little dampener on the jaunt level of his stroll. He needs to decide what to do about his next assignment – the practical part of his course – and things are going so well with Rebecca that he doesn’t want to risk it by addressing complicated questions like whether or not he should return to Emory and the potential of long-distance. And then, of course, there’s the issue of what he does after Emory…

He pauses, drumming his fingers against his chin, when a dress in the window of the shop directly in front of him catches his eye. It’s a long turquoise gown with one shoulder strap, and the sight of it immediately takes him back to Jayma’s wedding. He feels a pain in his stomach. Rebecca’s expression from the previous morning when she thought he’d left without saying goodbye appears in his mind’s eye and he feels a sweat starting to build behind his collar. 

He’s getting ahead of himself, he realizes, trying to take deep breathes. Now is not the time for a trademark Serrano overthink and panic and run. He just needs Rebecca to know that he’s here right now and thinking about her, and so he turns heel and heads towards Whitefeather.

As he enters the building he’s proud that he only feels a very small tinge of jealousy when he sees he talking to Nathaniel, which immediately vanishes when she turns and greets him with a smile that’s so open and honest and… dare he say, pure?

He hasn’t planned at all what to say so instead tells what he’s feeling.

“ _I just wanted to say hey…and that I missed you_.”

It feels weird, not very Greg Serrano-like at all, has he made a mistake, but his reward is the delight on her face.

“ _Hey_?” she suggest with a smile. “ _Do you want to kiss in public_?”

He can’t even bring himself to feign a jokey refusal and instead pulls her into what he thinks is probably best described as a passionate embrace – the kind of kiss that looks and feels cinematic, especially when you’re in the middle of it.

“Serrano, you’re going nowhere” he thinks, and hopes hard that Rebecca can somehow hear him. _Boom go his feelings_.


	5. 412 I need a break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AKA the Raging Waters episode, which is one of my favorites, and also one with lots of differing interpretations flying around the fandom. I enjoyed getting into it.
> 
> Also, had to bump up the rating as the first part gets a little NSFW. Yeah, i think the lock-down is getting to me.

Greg carefully applies a line of toothpaste to his toothbrush, eyeballing himself and the accompanying shadows under his eyes in the bathroom mirror as he does so. He’s spent so many of the last two weeknights at Rebecca’s place, that his own night-time routine feels alien to him now.

He’s only half-surprised when his phone trills – a little than he was expecting perhaps?

“Rebecca is everything okay?” he answers warmly.

“Heey!! Sorry, sorry, sorry to disturb you. So glad you’re still awake!” she chirps.

“Yeah, it’s pretty late. You’re lucky you caught me - I was just heading to get my 8 hours” he grins down the phone.

She ignores this. “So, it’s kinda dark over here…”

“Dark?” he raises an eyebrow. “At night-time?”

“I know, I know but I’d forgotten how dark it gets here when I’m alone, and there’s like a noise…”

Greg sits up straighter, and asks in amusement, “Rebecca… is this a _booty_ call?”

“What? Wait no” she says half-indignantly and then turns more serious. “No, there really is a weird noise from one of the pipes. Also, did you per chance ever hear that this house is the scene of a famous murder. Greg, it’s a literal murder house over here and I'm alone in it.”

He pauses. “I’ll be right over.”

* * *

“Yaaaay!!” Rebecca sweeps Greg into the house the instant his hand touches the bell, wrapping her arms around his neck and hitching one leg up around his waist.

“Mmmm, hi??” he manages from underneath the onslaught of her face.

“You came! Soo, do you want anything to imbibe? I’ve got some bagels ready to heat up if you're peckish?” She eases off him and pulls him by hand into the kitchen.

He smiles as she hops up onto the counter, her short white dressing down exposing an appealing amount of thigh. Then his general fatigue returns and reminds him it’s almost midnight and he stifles a yawn.

“So, about this pipe noise?” he asks.

She blinks a couple of time, followed by a “right, right” , a smile covering her momentary confusion, and ushers him to the bathroom.

There is an obvious silence as they both stand and listen.

It’s broken by a, this time, unstifled yawn from Greg. “Hey, do you think we can…” he starts to suggest, but Rebecca presses a finger against his lips.

“Shhh,” she instructs, listening, with her head on one side.

There’s a barely audible groan from one of the pipes.

“Hmmm.” Greg disappears momentarily under the cabinet and then re-emerges with a shrug.

“Yeah, I have no idea if that’ll fix it but at least I’m here if anything ‘happens’” he admits with his palms up in defeat and a grin on his face. 

She grabs his hand and pulls him back towards her. “My hero,” she coos, somehow simultaneously managing to pull off his jacket and manhandle him back towards the living room.

Greg is a again bout to suggest heading to bed again, but then finds himself on the couch with Rebecca straddling his lap, a bare thighs pressed into either side of his leg.

“How can I ever repay you?” she murmurs, tilting his head back and starting to kiss a line down his throat, her hands working at the buttons on his shirt.

Sleep begins to ebb away.

“Oh… this is a good start” he says, moving from supporting her back and placing a firm hand on either thigh, his fingers brushing underneath the bottom of her gown.

She grins, tightening her grip around his neck and squeezing him tighter with her thighs to steady herself. As she leans forward, he gets a closer glimpse of the lacy navy and white bra showcasing her cleavage.

He leans into her neck, breathing her in and pushing his fingers further up her thighs until... he stops.

“Rebecca?” He huffs a breath of laughter and trails his fingers experimentally up over her hips to her belly and then back down to her thighs, not meeting the expected satin, cotton or silk.

She ignores him and continues her mission kissing down his chest, so he lightly tilts her chin up towards him with a fingertip.

“Rebecca,” he repeats, his voice steady and low. “You seem to have forgotten something.”

“Oops,” she purrs, mischievously. “Laundry day?”

He rolls his eyes up like he can’t believe she’s in front of him like this, and then his hands move more quickly, pulling her hungrily towards him by the belt on her gown. Her hands encircle his face, kissing him greedily with her tongue in his mouth, hands tugging at brown curls.

She gasps a little as he loosens the belt, exposing more of her cleavage and running his fingers lightly over the exterior lace before pulling down a cup to expose her more fully. Taking a nipple between his thumb and forefinger, he enjoys her reaction so much that he leans down and takes it into his mouth, his tongue rhythmically flicking the pink flesh.

Rebecca basks in this sensation for moment, head back, thighs tight, and hands digging into his back under his shirt and lets him reveal her other breast, his mouth on one with the other full in his hand.

She groans and then stops, pushing her palm flat across his face.

“No,” she whispers. “I’m thanking you, remember!?” Her hands reach for his belt buckle.

“Okay,” he sighs and sinks back into the couch, looking lustily up at her exposed breasts, pink mouth and darkened eyes.

She nimbly hops off him and tugs off his pants before hopping back and pushing the warmth between her legs back over the hardness now present in his briefs, and grinds slowly against him.

He immediately returns his mouth to her breasts, wetly covering each nipple with his tongue, as his hands remove the remaining fastening of the belt, hands then reaching around to firmly grab her ass.

Satisfied at his reaction, she takes a breath and then pulls back a little, hitching her balance onto one of his legs, and freeing a hand to reach inside his pants. She pulls him out, leaning into his neck as she gives him a few long, firm strokes.

Greg moans into the side of her face before he recovers himself enough to look into her eyes and whisper: “So, this _was_ a booty call, right?”

Grinning, she doesn’t answer but holds his gaze and pushes away from him, lifting herself up slightly. Her holds her steady with one hand and takes the opportunity to slide the other between her legs, finally, tracing circles on her wetness.

Rebecca’s eyes widen, her lips parted, and she sits on his touch for a moment, but then grabs his hand with her own and looks him determinedly in the eye.

Her other hand takes him firmly in her grip and she slides over him slowly and surely, squeezing her thighs tight against him with a wicked lock on her face.

Holding her firmly by the hips, Greg’s head falls back with a sigh, as she rides up and down on his length. He submits to her as she continues, helping her position herself so the friction is good for her too. They continue and her moans grow louder, and Greg knows he isn’t going to last much longer with the audio and visual show playing out in front of him. He finds a breast into his mouth, sucking, and crashing incomprehensibly into her as he shudders to a climax.

After a panting moment, Rebecca rolls contently into his lap and they lie still in the silence with his head resting on her shoulder.Smiling, she runs her hand through his hair and slowly pulls up his head to look him in the eye. But then he tugs at her hand and pulls her back onto her knees above him.

“Whaaa?” she smiles, questioningly, but he’s already sliding through her legs and positioning himself under her. A man with a mission.

Her mouth opens in realization and she grabs onto the back of the couch to steady herself, as his tongue hits just the spot she wants.

Afterwards, when Greg finally gets them both into bed, he checks his watch. It’s 1.20am. So much for a full 8 hours.

* * *

The next morning Greg’s head is hazily full of the night before as they take a gentle stroll of her block.

He could definitely have done with a second shot of coffee and he’s feeling an underlying sense of guilt at his lack of studying that he was definitely going to do today. Yet, Rebecca’s enthusiasm is somehow more than making up for it.

“ _Soo, you’re new Greg and I’m new Rebecca and we’ve been taking things slow_ ….” She begins, turning her most megawatt smile on him.

He throws a little cold water over this notion, reminding her that they’ve spent the last two weeks together every night, but he’s secretly not that mad about it.

Rebecca’s excitement builds, her pupils visibly dilating, and he can tell she’s leading up to something.

A day out? Spending time together somewhere else? Actually, he can do this...right?

At the most romantic place on earth? His mind races. What, like a date night or something? He ponders where counts as overly romantic in Southern California.

Or perhaps she wants to take a trip? He feels a little panicky but also excited.

“ _Paris_?” he asks, tentatively.

“ _Raging Waters_!!!”

Oh. He’s not sure what to say. Visions of horrendous middle school trips with crowds of terrifying teenage girls encircling Josh Chan spring to mind.

“ _It’s not really my thing_ …” but Rebecca is really into the idea. Extremely into the idea. Hanging off his neck with her faces millimeters from his-into it.

“ _Whadda ya say_? _Whadda ya say_?”

The baby voice and her general level of intensity set off alarm bells in the back of his mind, but he doesn’t want to be a dick about this when she's so happy about it, and Raging Waters with Rebecca is bound to be more fun than with a bunch of middle-schoolers. Plus, she’ll be in swimwear, so there's always that.

He acquiesces and gives her a long, careful look, but after her initial glee she’s happily pulling at his hand, and then they’re making lunch plans and she wants tacos and he forgets to worry.

* * *

**[TWO DAYS LATER]**

**Rebecca Bunch [5.21pm]:** Hey Serrano! Is your towel packed for tomorrow? Are you still coming round at 7.30? xxxxx

 **Greg Serrano [5.37pm]:** It is! You still 100% on the Waters? Xx

 **RB [5.39pm]:** I am! God, you sound like Dr Akopian. Just had the WORST therapy session. She really tried to kill my buzz, but unbeknownst to her, it’s just made me passionate for tomorrow!! Xxxxx

 **GS [5.44pm]:** Oh sucks, do you want to talk about it? She not a fan of water parks either? ;) Xx

 **RB [5.45pm]:** Nope, just the usual therapy jargon! Probably jealous that I’m getting some, haha. Ironic really, since she’s the one who told me “I deserved love!” xxx

 **GS [5.53pm]:** Okay, well we can just hang tomorrow if you’d prefer? Or find some other more romantic spot in the SG Valley? Xx

 **RB [5.54pm]:** Greg! Sounds like you’re trying to get out of it again?!?! Xxxx

 **GS [5.56pm]:** I’m not – I just suspect there may be other just as romantic places, nay more romantic places, that may have, say, less screaming children in attendance? Xx

 **RB [5.57pm]:** Haha, you’re so funny!! No, still 100% set on RW. It’s going to be amazing, I can’t wait to be there with you 😊 Also, I’ve got an outfit I know you’ll like! xoxoxxo

 **GS: [6.03pm]** Okay Bunch, we’re on! See you soon 💦 Xxx

* * *

Greg is a little overheated, but otherwise has to admit he’s having a good time. And he does, out loud.

Rebecca’s look of delight sustains him as they stand in line waiting for their drinks. Of course, she insisted that they get there as soon as the park opened, so the crowds are still thin, and hardly any of the rides are open yet.

She pours over the map in agitated excitement, only looking up to occasionally disagree with him as he discusses the episode of _Better Call Saul_ they watched the previous night.

The cracks only start to appear when he makes the, in hindsight, admittedly foolish, error of telling her he’s not intending to actually go on any rides.

Her face falls. “ _So, I’ll be the sad lady riding alone_?”

Hum, he hasn’t thought this through. He definitely doesn’t want her to be that person. “ _Or be with that person_ ” he jokes.

The first ride he goes on isn’t so bad. He gets to squeeze up to her, of course, and sneaks a kiss of her bare shoulder when no-ones looking, and he can feel the enjoyment radiating out of her to such an extent that it almost makes the face full of cold water at the end bearable.

But then there are more rides. So many more rides. And the sun gets hotter and the queues get longer, and too many kids are screaming around him, and he would defy anyone to laugh as some bratty kid squirts them directly in the face with a jet of freezing water.

He bites his tongue as Rebecca pulls him towards an apparent photo point with a scary look of intensity on her face. Bristling, he tries to think of something to say that won’t come out as antagonistic as she rearranges his pose for the photo into something she deems more “fun”.

At a loss, he suggests lunch, as food usually works to sweeten them both. He’s sorting the food as Rebecca spots the photo print point and then returns with a look of thunder on her face.

“ _I was so excited to frame a picture of us on a ride, but I can’t frame this, you look miserable_.”

Greg sighs. He wants to tease her out of this mood but he’s also in no mood to agree with her when she isn’t exactly being reasonable.

He's never claimed to live water parks but he thinks he's put in a good effort considering. 

“ _I just thought if you were here with me then you might like it_?”

That’s how he had felt. Earlier. Before the exact degree of his enjoyment had been scrutinized so fully. He would have looked back on the earlier part of the day happily despite the crappy-looking picture, and had planned to enjoy the lunch and then leaving part of the day as well. He doesn't really give a shit if the picture is bad and thinks she shouldn't either, but senses well enough not to say so blatantly.

“ _Ah, you thought I might like something… let me clear that up for you_ ” he jokes, trying to tease a smile out of her.

Her face remains stern.

It’s almost as if she takes my long-seated dislike of water parks as a personal slight against her, he thinks.

“Okay, Rebecca – so, there are many things I hate but they don’t have anything to do with you.”

He decides to list a few, mainly to entertain himself, as she doesn’t seem to be thawing, although he’s pleased when she nods in agreement as he scoffs at the specificity of white women who call their engagement rings bling.

Okay, yes, maybe after that he should have stopped a tad sooner, but he can’t help getting on a roll, feeling in a better mood now with food in his belly. The sun is improving his mood as well; the rays shining down on Rebecca and highlighting the pretty red and gold threads in her hair, her green eyes sparkling at him despite her down-turned face. He's spent so much time with her since his return to California that heck, he could probably draw her face with his eyes closed too, and thought makes him feel unusually... gooey?

He feels his stomach somersault and, heck, how can he explain this to her? How can he explain how much he's loved the past two weeks and the weird buzz he feels when he thinks about her.

“Yes, there are a million crappy things in this world but, and I can’t believe I’m actually saying this, but I guess I think that love conquers all those things.”

Rebecca blinks back at him as he pauses, before he reaches and lightly cups her face in his hand. “Like, I don’t care about hating on those things when I’m when I’m with you. You love so many things, and all the fun you have… it makes me just wanna forget everything I hate.”

He stops again, a little out of breath and also a little embarrassed.

Rebecca continues to look conflicted.

“ _Did that clear things up_?”

“ _No, I get it. You hate everything and you hate this place…it’s making you miserable. So, I’m making you miserable and I’m an idiot_.”

Wait, what?! No, the opposite! But Rebecca is already stalking off towards the parking lot.

* * *

By the time they reach Rebecca’s house, Greg had hoped to have cajoled Rebecca out of her funk, but instead a thick silence reigns. She’ll barely look at him and he figures that if they were in a cartoon right now someone would have drawn angry looking thunderclouds above her head.

He feels hurt when she rebuffs his “ _did you not hear what I said? I said love conquers all…_ ”

And when he tries to dig a little deeper, asking if she’s keeping up with her BDP work and maybe feeling a little sensitive, she turns on him with such a snarl that he steps back, palms facing outwards.

Woah.

He waits a beat.

Part of him wants to stay, but he can tell she’s itching for a fight and the long day has taken its toll on him too. If he stays he can’t promise himself he won’t rise to her bait and say something he’ll later regret, and he definitely doesn’t want to reintroduce _that_ dynamic. He's less angry these days but he's not a saint.

He decides to give her the space to be angry and sad. He also needs some of it himself.

* * *

Greg hates water parks. Greg hates Raging Waters. He hated spending the day with her there and now he probably hates her too.

Rebecca clenches her jaw. She doesn’t want to hear his crappy jokes about Josh’s pubic mons and when he leaves she’s not surprised, although she was secretly dreading it, and lashes out at him.

“ _Leaving… classic Greg move. Oh hey, I’ve found something that you actually like!_ ”

But then when he’s gone, she wobbles. For the last two weeks he’d been so here. In her apartment, in her arms, in her bed, on her couch, in her. Her mind, her body, her head, her heart.

Now the house is silent. She can no longer see his hazel eyes blink and squint at something funny or cute she’s said, or the small satisfied smile he gives when he realizes something he’s said has made her laugh. And given how today went, and the way she just screamed at him, it dawns on her that he might not be back.

Fuck it. She pours herself a drink.

But she’s not sad. She’s mad. Mad at Greg, not herself. She considers calling Paula but she’s probably studying again. And Heather will be with Hector and Valencia loved up with Beth. Ugh.

She considers watching Netflix and trying to calm herself, but the next episode of _Better Call Saul_ pops up, and she and Greg had been halfway through the series and she snaps it off. It won’t be the same without him.

Suddenly the house is full of memories and she pours another drink. It’s not just Greg but also Nathaniel, and even Josh who is never here anymore either. Where is he anyway? It’s empty and she’s empty and she has to get out before she burns another one down to the ground.

She’s still NOT sad as she rails around town. Nope, she’s bad instead. Even if she is somehow ranting incomprehensibly about 9/11 and Lilo and Stich to anyone near enough to listen. Actually, it’s a very well-thought out analogy that Greg probably wouldn’t get because he’s probably above Disney even though they did watch Toy Story 3 that one time, but that must have been an exception. He probably read a snarky Cracked article about it or something.

And she’s not sad when she spots a taco cart and has wolfed two down before she even lets herself think about any memories to do with Greg and tacos. He’ll probably never eat one again out of spite towards her. Typical.

No, she’s not sad, she’s bad, and what do bad girls want...? Bad boys.

* * *

Nathaniel looks surprised when he opens the door. Then amused, bemused and then concerned, but she decides to ignore that last bit.

Annoyingly, he isn’t as easy to coax into bad behavior as she had hoped. Perhaps, because she is a bit wobbly and maybe slurring a little, but she does still know what he likes. Could he, Nathaniel, be the man of her dreams??

The _pubic mons_ of her dreams?! Who else but Greg would make a stupid joke about pubic mons, especially Josh’s pubic mons, and now suddenly, 3 hours later, it’s funny. Hillarious even, and then Nathaniel is offering to call her and Uber.

No, she can call her own Uber, thank you very much. She doesn’t need or want his help or concern; she needs his body and if that’s not on offer then she’s leaving on her own terms.

***

She’s relieved to find Josh Chan on her couch eating peanut butter out of jar. The apartment is, thankfully, now less full of ghosts.

The alcohol buzz is wearing off now and he’s being sweet. Sweet enough for her to feel something other than sad for a moment. She pushes the darkness away for long enough to instigate a massage moment with Josh but when he declines, she can’t fight it anymore.

There’s an emptiness that’s been threatening to swallow her whole, and all evening she’d chased after the darkness instead, finding it’s familiarity comforting. She gives in and wakes up the next morning on a bench outside Dr Shin’s office. Maybe she does need a little help.

* * *

Greg manages not to call or text Rebecca that evening, but his mind is full of her. Space will be good for them both, he tells Whi-Jo. And in all honesty, they truly hadn’t been sticking to the taking it slow thing.

Yet, her parting barbs still play on loop throughout his mind.

“ _Leaving! Classic Greg move. You’re good at that_!”

She had to know it wasn’t like that, right?

He was leaving for the night, establishing some boundaries - like not okaying her calling him a dick and lashing out. He wasn’t running out of town for two years. Not leaving her again. Not that he specifically left her last time either, he hopes she knows this by now.

He finds it hard to square the Rebecca of today with the Rebecca of the last couple of weeks. The “New Rebecca” he’d met again in the new Homebase the night of the school reunion. Today’s Rebecca had more shades of the old Rebecca, unsteady and self-destructive. He racks his brain trying to think of how many times she’d attended group or therapy sessions over the last two weeks and all he finds is guilt.

Uneasy, he opens his laptop and stares at his next assignment as a distraction. A practical – a soft opening of some kind of pop-up enterprise. Is it time for him to go back to Atlanta or is there something here worth staying for?

What’ll it be?


	6. 413 I need to get out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Rebecca spending all her time with Paula in the hospital, her relationship with Greg is at a standstill.
> 
> Greg worries about the state of their relationship after Raging Waters and also about Rebecca's mental health.
> 
> Both Greg and Rebecca confront their feelings for Josh Chan.
> 
> Nathaniel is also present.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this one has taken so long! This episode isn't one of my favourites and it took me a lot of sorting in my head to get through it. Most of what happens in the hospital is farce, and this contrasted with Rebecca's breakdown in the previous episode and her going on meds, is a weird dichotomy for me. Anyway, hope this chapter is in some way enjoyable and coherent!!

“Cookie, I’m undeniably glad you’re here but please could you stop staring at me so intensely? It’s kinda wigging me out.”

“Sorry” mouths Rebecca softly, yet she doesn’t change from her position has f leaning on the bars on Paula’s hospital bed, or adjust her eye-line from Paula’s pale face.

“I just can’t believe you had a heart attack and I didn’t realize… imagine if…”

“Hey!” Paula pats her hand firmly. “I didn’t realize either. Scott didn’t realize… well he kinda did but I didn’t listen anyway. You’re here now and that’s all that matters.”

Rebecca nods weakly, trying to smile.

“Anyhoo,” Paula continues, keen to change the subject. “Why is it that you still smell like chlorine and corn dogs? Didn’t you go to Raging Waters, like, two days ago now?”

This time Rebecca grimaces. “Yup.”

She’s been avoiding talking about what happened at Raging Waters, avoiding thinking about it in all honesty. Paula being suddenly and dramatically hospitalized has been a good distraction for that at least.

“I’m guessing something happened there?” Paula presses, eyes widening in encouragement.

“Yeah, but we don’t need to talk about it now,” Rebecca says, shifting a little. “I’m here for you Mama, for everything you need… it’s not about me right now.”

Paula flops back against her pillow. “Aw, c’mon” she pleads. “Honestly, I’d love to talk about anything else right now, otherwise I’m going to be lying here and contemplating my impending lifetime of salads and, like, never ending Pilates.”

“Okay,” Rebecca smiles, a little more understandingly. “Well, let’s say the day did not go as planned. Or as I planned, I guess.”

“Uh huh.” Paula sounds unsurprised.

“And then Greg didn’t, er, exactly match my enthusiasm level I guess, and I took that as a sign for his feelings for me and blew up and maybe had a bit of meltdown... and somehow ended up making a pass at both Josh and Nathaniel, and ugh, the worst” she finishes quickly.

“Oh Cookie, I don’t think anyone’s excitement levels would ever match yours toward Raging Waters” Paula chuckles. “Especially not Greg’s. He’s all snark and pout, not Mr-Family-Friendly- Day-Out." She gestures with her hands, pleased with this analogy.

Rebecca nods. “I get it. I just imagined it all going differently and then he suggested a breather and I totally freaked out.”

Paula makes a sympathetic noise in response, but then yawns, so Rebecca seizes the chance to turn the conversation back to more practical matters, before eventually deciding to finally go home and shower, as Paula falls back asleep.

She checks her phone as she hops into her car but there’s nothing except a few heart emojis from Valencia in the Gurl Group 4eva chat.

She reads her last reply from Greg to her message about needing a minute, chewing a little on the inside of her lip as she does.

“Hey, okay. Hope you’re okay Rebecca! I heard about Paula, that’s pretty scary stuff. Let me know when you’re ready x”

Compared to the messages from the week before, which were (for Greg) love bubble nonsense and scores of ridiculous emojis, it’s pretty bland, and she can’t get a hint of deeper meaning from any of it.

Pausing, she hovers her thumb over the reply box and begins a message... “Greg…” After a moment she deletes this, hoping he hasn’t noticed the tell-tale dots of her beginning to type.

* * *

Across town, Greg has, of course, seen the said “Rebecca Bunch” is typing a message dots, and gestures in frustration when they almost immediately disappear again.

“Aw, c’mon Rebecca” he groans, throwing the phone down on the coffee table.

“You okay there, buddy?” Whi-Jo asks from the easy chair opposite.

“No… well, I mean yes. I think so…. I guess I really don’t know.”

“Hmm” replies Whi-Jo. “Drama from Rebecca Bunch. Who would have thought it?!”

Greg sighs. “Well, Paula is pretty sick. You can’t blame that one on Rebecca.” He looks away from Whi-Jo and back at his laptop. “And I’m glad she’s been so supportive of Paula, and also, I did mention we could do with a break, a breather… y’know.”

He begrudgingly realizes he sounds like he’s trying to convince himself and continues staring stonily at the screen in front of him, trying to mask his emotions again.

“Yeah, no, Paula’s situation isn’t the drama I was talking about,” Whi-Jo says, raising a finger to get Greg’s attention. “More the fact that you guys got together again after everything that happened -just pinged back together like magnets – all, like, gooey-eyed for two weeks and then something happened at Raging Waters and you freaked and now she’s ghosting you, dude.”

“I was never gooey-eyed!” Greg indignantly responds, but Whi-Jo gives him a sceptical look that quickly silences him. He blushes.

“Fine,” he continues, looking increasingly uncomfortable. “Things were unbelievably great for a moment there. Surprisingly, so – it was like all the good stuff that was always there…”

“…Spare me the details, please” cuts in Whi-Jo.

Greg smirks. “The shall-remain-undetailed good stuff, but without all the self-destruction and dysfunction that used to be there.”

He pauses.

“But then after Raging Waters, I mean I’m not saying I was blameless… but she like lost it and part of me did just want to get out of there, but, like, I think we also needed the space.”

He looks back at Whi-Jo, uncertainly.

“I think… oh god, I hope it was the right thing to do.”  
  


He covers his face with hands. “Now, I’ve just got to wait and see I guess.”

“I guess you do” echoes Whi-Jo. After a beat, he adds “Why did you even go to Raging Waters anyway? Are you fifteen? I’m not surprised things went south there given you’re…” He gestures at Greg as he struggles to find the appropriate words “…you.”

Greg nods in agreement. “Turns out Rebecca has strong feelings for water parks. Like, a lot. Like don’t you dare make a joke out of it. I went on multiple slides for her, man.”

Whi-Jo laughs and shakes his head. “I’ll never understand that woman.”

* * *

Greg declines Whi-Jo’s invitation to go to Home Base that evening. He has an agitated feeling that he knows sitting in a bar won’t do anything to help with. Not that sitting at home will help much either, but right now he’d rather sit at home with his Netflix queue and and a diet soda and feel sorry for himself. Besides he suspects Josh will be there and he’s happy with his distance from Chan right now.

He moves his phone out of reach and slouches down into the folds of an old favourite plaid shirt, trying to ignore the persistent thought that he wishes his soda was something stronger.

A few hours later, Netflix is asking him if he’s still watching, but his sense of unease still lingers. Hitting “yes” he stares blankly while running over the “evidence” in his head.

1)Rebecca at Raging Waters had been a whirlwind, bulldozing all in her path. Greg had noticed her intensity earlier in the day, but had assigned it mostly to her excitement for the concept of a trip to Raging Waters. Despite his own feelings towards water parks, he’d found her enthusiasm cutely winning, and it wasn’t morose Greg who stood hand-in-hand with her waiting in line for the park to open.

2) By the end of the day, things had definitely changed and Greg’s relationship spidey senses (the few he had) were tingling. He’d let her push him around the park with a weary patience but after his biffed attempt to share feelings via some misguided humour and her attack on the patio, he knew she wasn’t in a good place. That they weren’t in a good place.

3) Later on that night, he’d received 3 missed calls from Rebecca and one garbled answer phone message where he couldn’t make out much apart from something about tacos that he wasn’t allowed, and how he didn’t understand that she wasn’t sad, and then some hysterical laughter about pubic mons.

4) Judging by the pitch of her voice, he could practically smell the alcohol down the phone, and then it dawns on him what the look on her face had been on the patio. He recognised it because it was a mode he’d reverted to himself so many times to mask any other kind of emotion. Self-sabotage. Self-sabotage and self-destruction.

Again, he wonders what exactly it was that Rebecca got up to that night, and how long he’ll have to wait to find out.

* * *

FIVE DAYS LATER

“Rebecca, honey, wake up!”

“Waah… what?” She sits up with a start, rubbing her eyes as a frowning Paula comes into focus.

“That was your phone ringing. Again.”

Rebecca fumbles through her bag to pull out her iPhone and finds a missed call from Greg. She hits redial but gets his answerphone and gives a “blast” before quickly hanging up.

“You still haven’t spoken to him, huh?” Paula asks, her tone staying flat.

“Well, we’ve spoken. We’ve just not spoken-spoken, you know” she admits. “I’ve been here with you and then there’s these new pills, and then I called him yesterday but he was in an online seminar thing.”

“Oh yeah, I forgot he studies as well,” Paula says, looking at her own laptop perched on her knee with a frown, and then up at Rebecca again.

“Mm,” Rebecca replies, distractedly, “and then we were meant to chat on Wednesday, but he had to talk to his tutor about an idea for a practical pop-up restaurant… or something.”

“Really??” Paula sounds more interested.

Rebecca rests her head back down on the bed. “Yeah, I hope he makes the cannelloni… or the best one...that fettuccine.”

“God, I’d kill for some some decent food about now” Paula says, wistfully, but Rebecca has fallen back asleep and doesn’t hear her unreasonably long monologue about her favourite different types of pasta.

* * *

Two days later, and Greg is in the hospital parking lot stressing.

After a week of not-quite-communicating with Rebecca, his nerves are shot and her words to him on her porch are lodged firmly in his brain. Logically, he knows she wasn’t in a reasonable frame of mind, but the lack of communication is sending his paranoia into overdrive, especially her barbs about him enjoying leaving.

This isn’t like last time – like two years ago. He’s not ghosting her for two weeks, he’s giving her what he considers is a respectful space. But in case there is any doubt in her mind [because how can he know what is in her mind when they haven’t spoken for a week] he’s determined to make contact, even though a part of him is terrified of what he might find out.

So, that’s how he nervously finds himself in front of the terrifying-looking hospital receptionist [seriously, like scarier than Valencia used to be at her worst] trying to explain that’s here to visit someone who’s here visiting Paula Proctor.

The receptionist remains unmoved, but his rambling story and nerves aren’t at all settled by the arrival of Nathaniel into the waiting area, carrying a luxurious-looking bunch of flowers.

Greg’s anxious brain is just analyzing exactly how tall Nathaniel is [he never looked that tall at the gym] when Nathaniel spots him and looks gives a weak greeting, looking visibly uncomfortable.

“Oh, Greg, hey…” he says, his eye line tailing off with impressive speed.

Greg raises his eyebrows, but has no time to think up a suitable response as right then Josh Chan also enters the reception area.

He’s also carrying flowers and Greg is suddenly jolted back to two years earlier, also staring down a petulant-looking Josh in a hospital waiting room, again laden with flowers, and waiting for Rebecca. Except this time, he doesn’t even have a stick balloon.

“ _Flowers are dead when you buy them anyway, so you’re basically handing over a bunch of remains_ ,” he mumbles, thinking about how he’s not here to see Paula anyway, he’s here to visit Rebecca and has no reason to feel guilty about that.

Neither Josh or Nathaniel say anything to ease the situation, and if he wasn’t so eager to see Rebecca he’d have taken off already, but the thought of talking to her again makes him pause.

He immediately wishes he hadn’t, as one of those stupid twists of fate that only seem to happen to him in West Covina, and in the sphere of Rebecca Bunch, strikes again.

* * *

Rebecca is again trying to wake herself up [crappy medication side effects] but it isn’t until she sees the look on Paula’s face when the nurse explains he can’t sign her out that morning, that she manages to shake of the fuzzy fug. She can’t let Paula miss taking the Barr, not after she’s worked so hard. And she wants this, it’s written all over her damn face.

Rebecca realizes with a pang that she can’t remember the last time she wanted something so badly herself – in fact she doesn’t know if she ever has. Unless, she counts wanting Josh Chan, and, well, everyone knows how that turned out.

But this isn’t about her. It’s about Paula and she’s now determined to get her to the exam. With the willing help of Heather and Valencia she hatches a plan, and then she’s purposely striding down the hospital corridor towards Paula’s rescue, but also, unbeknownst to her, to meet her own fate.

* * *

If Greg had to choose the place he’d least like to spend a Saturday afternoon, being trapped in a quarantined hospital ward with Nathaniel Plimpton and Josh Chan would be pretty high up.

Heck, he would even choose riding slides at Raging Waters again over this.

Josh’s bottom lip is out, and he still won’t look at him. Nathaniel’s jaw is clenched and so Greg sits and idly picks at the skin around his thumb, willing time to pass.

Is it a relief when Nathaniel is the one to finally break the silence? Possibly, the stakes are lower for him, Greg rationalizes.

“ _Is this just because we dated the same girl_?” Nathaniel tries.

He and Josh offer non-committal grunts in response, and Nathaniel continues with some strangled-car metaphor Greg is only half-following.

“ _…and anyway, she picked Greg_ ” Nathaniel finishes.

There’s a telling silence where Josh examines the far wall again.

“ _She did pick you, right_?” Nathaniel adds, and Greg really doesn’t like the note of hopeful doubt he can hear in his voice.

“ _Yeah, err, no, erm, yes.. yes_ ,” he stutters, hating how unsure he sounds. If they’d have asked him this time two weeks ago, when he and Rebecca were in the middle of their “new” love honeymoon, his response would have been solid and probably pretty smug.

There is also a definite air of suspicion creeping into his brain given both Josh and Nathaniel’s current expressions. Are they some how involved with whatever happened that night after he and Rebecca had fought?

Nathaniel ploughs determinedly on, trying to convince them that they should really be bros, but then unwillingly stumbles into something that makes the whole situation worse, accidentally revealing Greg has been back to West Covina multiple times since he left two years ago.

An even darker cloud forms over Josh’s face as he puts the pieces together. “ _You ghosted me for two years… I thought we were okay when you left_.”

“ _You were engaged to Rebecca_. _I thought a bit of distance was healthy for everyone_.” Greg reminds him, bitterly not wanting to remind himself of that fact Josh and Rebecca were once engaged.

He realizes now why he hasn’t wanted to face Josh. By keeping apart his new relationship, it had been just his this time. Just him and Rebecca and nothing to do with Josh Chan.

Now Josh is in his face and he can’t escape it.

And Josh is hurt and feels judged and Greg begins to feel guilty.

Guilt at ignoring Josh, but then also guilt at the fact he hadn’t wanted to see him. That his life for the last two years without Josh in it had been good. That he’d done better away, from out of Josh’s shadow, no longer the cynical and comedy secondary sidekick.

Yet, despite this, he knows none of this is Josh’s fault and that his oldest friend is right. He hadn’t ever judged Greg, and old drunken Greg had done some pretty terrible things. Greg wouldn't have blamed him for judging him.

But the thing about old friends is, they know exactly where to twist the knife...

“ _You don’t deserve Rebecca. You were a dick to her, and you’ll never be good enough for her_.” Josh spits.

Any guilt Greg had been feeling immediately vanishes and his old fears resurface. “Not good enough”. She’ll leave him and he’ll always be the second choice. 

The room spins a little.

Then he takes the learned deep breathes remembering that he left, made positive choices to improve his life and it was Josh who hurt Rebecca, humiliated her in the most public way possible.

He bites this out.

***

And then they fight.

* * *

Two floors down and a blurry Rebecca wakes up in the morgue.

Wait, … what?

The aftereffects of the antidepressants are giving this whole day a very surreal feel.

Trying not to panic, she hurriedly extracts herself from the under the sheet she must have fallen asleep under [again] and runs towards the door… which is locked.

Shit. She sinks down to the floor, still replaying the dream she’d just had in her head.

In the dream, she been back working as a lawyer, but a junior lawyer, but she;d been old – like 60-something – and then Paula had appeared and she was a judge, and then Darryl was there and happily married again with like five children. Everyone was there – Greg as a successful restauranter, Nathaniel as the CEO of Plimpton x3, Valenica – an award-winning wedding planner, Josh a karate teacher and Heather running all the Homebases.

Okay, okay, she gets it. Everyone has something and she doesn’t.

She blinks.

Wait, did that corpse just twitch or is she asleep again? She moves closer and reads the name tag.

 _Rebecca_.

Of course. And so is the next one and the next and the next.

Okay already, she really does get it. Life is short, and she needs to find something that makes her happy that’s not just a man [because god knows that never works]. Could it be more annoyingly obvious?

Asleep or awake, she looks into the mirror and sees that the flyer she’d found on the hospital noticeboard has imprinted onto her chest.

_CASTING CALL AUDITIONS FOR ENCORE ELLIOT!_

_A REVUE OF THE SONGS OF ELLIOT ELLISON_

Momentarily, she closes her eyes and is back onstage at camp, then workshopping scenes at college, and she feels a thrill that’s not quite glitter exploding but it’s warm and satisfying.

She wrinkles her nose and rolls her eyes.

“ _Ew, life, that’s so on the nose_.”

* * *

Greg’s enthusiasm towards the fight is waning but he does get a little thrill that there’s a mark from his fist on Josh’s left cheek.

He’s also kinda surprised he’s holding his own. Those early morning cardio-boxing sessions have paid off after all. He also suspects Josh’s is so worked up that all his karate training has evaporated, but he tries to ignore that. Anyway, he’s mostly relieved when they crash into the next room and Nathaniel pulls them apart.

He realizes as he stares at Josh who is nursing his hand and looking crushed, that he does still care. This is the same face that was there offering him chocolate and bro hug the day after his mom walked out on him and his dad.

The same guy that patiently laughed at Marco’s crap jokes over and over again when he came over for dinner.

So, when Nathaniel awkwardly forces them to admit they both still care about each other, he doesn’t resist.

It might not be the same as before, and he has no intention of reverting to being just “Josh Chan’s best bro” again, but perhaps there is something there worth saving after all.

* * *

After explaining it all to Paula, Rebecca is surprised to find herself next telling Josh all about her theatre dream.

She’s glad he’s spending more time in the house again now Greg isn’t around as much, and as he makes her a cup of coffee, she excitedly reveals all to him about her plan to audition for the revue.

“ _Do you think I’m insane and delusional and a weirdo_?” she asks, nervously, her adrenalin running high.

“No” he smiles and is supportive and sweet, despite knowing nothing of her actual skills, she thinks.

She beams. “ _Thank you. I’m really glad you’re my room mate. I mean who’d have thought we could be just friends_.”

She means it, after everything she’s been through with Josh, she feels proud that they have salvaged something platonic, and that all her misplaced feels about him being the only scratch to her itch have finally been resolved.

She also logs this feeling to tell Heather and Valenica about later, as she recalls they have both been visibly cynical about the idea of her and Josh living together again given… _everything_.

She doesn’t have time to take in Josh’s response to her comment, as Greg appears at the window and she takes a nervous breath of anticipation. Leading him back out onto the porch, she tries to smile at him but is painfully aware it reads more as a thin kind of grimace.

“Hey”. They don’t kiss or hug – there’s too much nervous tension for that – but she does notice his leather jacket, presumably new, because she’s never seen it before. It’s a little dressier than what he’d usually wear and she likes it, and itches to stroke it, and then it reminds her of the time he told her he’d brought new shoes because he wasn’t spending all his money on alcohol, and she remembers how far he’s come, and she feels sad about what she has to do next.

She also notices the scuff on his face. “ _What happened_?”

“ _Oh, yeah, well you should see the other guy_ ” Greg jokes weakly, his heart not in the funny for once.

A small voice in Rebecca’s head speculates that she might bare some of the responsibility for this wound and that it may involves Josh and/or Nathaniel, but she ignores it, trying to concentrate her thoughts.

“ _So, you were right the other day, about me being behind on therapy_.”

Greg nods. He’s glad there’s no argument, but for once gets no joy in being acknowledged as right.

“ _And so, after we fought, I felt really abandoned, which is a major trigger for me_.”

His heart sinks down and down into his chest, his fears realized, and then she tells him about going to Nathaniel’s place, and the massage moment with Josh and even though nothing happened… woah.

“ _Rebecca_ …” he can’t manage saying anything else. It’s just disappointment. At her, yes, but also a creeping sense of it towards himself for not realizing how behind she’d got with her therapy and mental health. Hell, he’s been through almost the same thing before himself, he should have slowed things down, figured it out sooner, even though she says that it’s on her.

He had just been so keen to show he was all in this time. He knew he’d screwed up the first time they were together at the wedding, he couldn’t let her go on thinking this time that he didn’t love her.

He swallows. But all this – meds, living with Josh, a new job, a new relationship, her ex-employer who she’d had an eight-month affair with still in the picture? It’s a lot for anyone to deal with, let alone someone with recently diagnosed BPD.

So, when she suggests she needs to take a beat before getting into anything serious, he gets it. It hurts and he badly wants to suggest the opposite. “I can do this now. I can help you. I can be strong for both of us.”

Yet, he also know it’s not about where he is on his journey, he’s got to give her the space to figure things out herself, at her own pace.

“ _Wow_ ”

It’s a sad wow, not one of his dry or impressed wows and Rebecca’s face wobbles.

“ _But I still really care about you. Like, so much_.”

He manages a weak “me too” in response, his hands deep in his pockets so he resists the urge to reach out and cradle her face like he has so many times before.

It hurts him to walk away but he knows he has to. Right now, complicated thoughts about Josh and Nathaniel crowd his brain and they aren’t pleasant. When they fade, he knows he’ll still have feelings for Rebecca, that "care about you so much" has given him just enough hope to hold onto.

But more importantly, he wants her to be well.

How does she get there? How does she get to the stage where she can argue with a boyfriend without… _that..._ being the response? Will it just take time?

He knows anyway, that it’s time for him to bow out… for now. Perhaps it’s not the end.


	7. 414 I’m finding my bliss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rebecca and Greg deal with their recent breakup by chasing their own passions. One works out and the other one is mostly a bust...
> 
> Greg comes to terms with his relationship with his hometown and Rebecca, despite her best intentions, finds herself spinning towards another Love Triangle.

Greg gives two firm heaves with his shoulder, grunting as the door finally creaks open, and then ducks back from the ensuing dust cloud that escapes the building.

“Woah, man” Hector coughs from behind him, before wafting at the dust, and following Greg inside.

“Yeah, so no-one has been in here for _years_ ” grimaces Greg, staring around the dark, dusty room. Her gingerly lifts a dirty tarpaulin and then quickly puts it back as something leggy scuttles out of sight.

Hector heads towards the back of the room. “You know, I remember this place from before. The meatballs were dope.”

Greg nods, beginning to smile. “They were. I can’t believe it’s just been sat here all this time.”

“Yeah, what’s that all about? Why didn’t Marco sell it or something?”

“Another great life decision from Marco Serrano, I guess.” Greg shrugs and follows Hector towards the counter. “It’s going to take a lot of work to get it back in working order,” he continues, sighing. “Might need some help to impress my tutor.”

Hector shifts his feet. “Hey, erm… you should ask Heather. She’s dope at this kind of stuff.”

“Ah, yes, your wife” Greg laughs, shaking his head.

“We’re all cool with that, right?” Hector asks, sounding a little strained. It’s a conversation that has previously gone unspoken between them.

“Sure, I’m totally fine with the fact I left town and my best friends tried to marry both my ex-girlfriends…” Greg stops himself and smiles at Hector. “Nah, bud – I’m happy for you both. And, also, you’re surprisingly well suited to each other.”

Hector exhales. “Cool. But I wasn’t joking about asking her to help. She loves all this kinda stuff – renovation queen!”

Greg chuckles. “You mean she no longer paints her toenails over the produce?”

“She’s a changed woman,” Hector grins. “So, how did you get your dad to agree to letting you reopen this place anyway?”

“Well, he owed me…” says Greg, but his smile fades as he thinks back to his conversation with Marco.

**[Two days earlier]**

“Three visits in on week, huh? Should I get a lawyer?” Marco jokes as he opens to the door of his apartment to find Greg staring at him, uneasily.

“Ha” Greg replies, sharply, staring around the room. “Hey, you cleaned the place up?” It’s much neater and brighter than his last visit and he spots an air freshener on the side. He's relieved, he has to quell the urge to clean up Marco's place whenever he has to visit. Despite everything, and he knows the relationship should technically work the other way around, the need to want to look after his dad has never quite left him. 

“I’m still trying to get myself together,” Marco admits.

“Right” Greg says, looking tense. “So, I’m here to ask you a favour, although, technically, it’s not really a favour since I think we’re both in agree that you owe me. Big time.”

Marco swallows and then nods, motioning Greg to continue.

Greg tells him about the practical part of his course, about opening up a pop up business, and how he thinks since Marco has a restaurant building gathering dust it’d be the perfect place for it.

“Really?!” Marco responds, gruffly, in surprise. “You want to revive that old corpse?”

“Well, yeah?”

“Not a good idea” he says, shaking his head. “Remember how everyone turned their back on that place? No-one wants authentic Italian anymore. They want identikit chain food or fancy stuff… like sushi.” He finishes with a flourish.

Greg hides a smile at the idea that Marco still thinks sushi qualifies as “fancy” food and continues:

“Come on, dad, it’s just for one project – I’m not planning to reopen the place properly. I know West Covina has moved on from _Serrano’s_ , believe me.”

Marco shakes his head again. “Son,” he begins but then he registers Greg’s expression and sighs. “Okay, then, who am I to say no, huh? I’ll find you the keys and think I’ve still got some relevant paperwork… but I’m not having anything to do with it. Ask your uncle if you need anything else.”

“Thanks, dad.” Greg says, getting up to leave. He has no desire to stay at Marco’s place any longer than he needs to.

* * *

“No, no, no” Rebecca shakes her head at Paula. She tries to hide her irritation that Paula has brought up Josh, Nathaniel and Greg again at this point.

“I’m putting them on pause” she says, shaking her two outfit choices at Paula, “to clear my path to concentrate on my true love, the theatre.”

Paula nods back at her, and Rebecca ignores the fact that she doesn’t look 100% convinced. She feels it in her gut this time that’s she’s doing the right thing. It’ll be much easier to forget about her break up with Greg, and previous twinkly feelings for Josh and Nathaniel, if she’s consumed by fictional drama, and auditions, and rehearsals, and opening nights.

She thinks back to college drama club and how good it had felt before she’d let a guy ruin that experience… again. But not this time… finding the Elliot Ellison flyer had been a sign, she’s sure of that now.

Seeing Paula look so excited about graduation, and her upcoming job interview, fills Rebecca with confidence. Soon that’ll be me, she thinks, starring in one of my favourite roles with that level of satisfaction and fulfillment.

**[But first, the auditions]**

There are fewer people present that Rebecca had expected but that’s okay. A small company – she can work with that. And, also, she’s not going to let Valencia’s attitude get her down. Just because Valencia’s having relationship problems, that doesn’t mean her own drive and enthusiasm levels need to be managed. There is a point in having expectations and having them doesn’t mean she’s going to fall flat on her face. Unlike Valencia, she’s determined that relationship issues are not going to affect her theatre experience.

Even when Josh and Nathaniel both unexpectedly show up, she shakes her suspicions and reads it as another positive sign. Doing the thing she loves surrounded by her friends, what could be better?

So, what if she can’t really sing or doesn’t have leading lady looks like Valencia? That’s okay. She takes a deep breath and breathes in the distinct smell of a theatre. Kinda wooden and musty and old. She loves it so much and Connie, the director, loves her, and her brand of comedy performance.

She’s got the part.

* * *

“So, my costume is a bride. Granted, a pirate bride, but still a _bride_.” Valencia punctuates her words with the hand holding her wine glass. “And, still Beth says nothing.”

“Maybe you should just tell her how you feel?” offers Heather in a neutral tone.

Valencia folds her arms across her chest. “No, that’s just not the way it’s done.”

“Hmmm, it could be?” Heather says, skeptically.

When Valencia just glares in response, Rebecca willingly jumps in to change the subject.

“Well, I can’t believe I’m not vibing with my song. For all these years I’ve thought of Elliot Ellison as a complete god and looking at the lyrics through fresh eyes… like, oh my god.”

“Are you gonna quit?” Heather asks.

“No,” Rebecca frowns. “I think it’s just the way things were then, you know I’m realizing now that misogyny is just so endemic throughout the musical genre…”

Valencia sighs loudly and Rebecca shoots her look. “But you know I still love the backstage and the costumes, and lights, and I’m enjoying not having to think about guys for once.”

“Apart from the fact that both Nathaniel and Josh are involved in the show” Valencia adds and Heather laughs.

“Yeah, that’s kinda weird” says Rebecca “I never knew they were both into theatre.”

Heather pulls a disbelieving face. “Yeah, a real coincidence.”

“No,” Rebecca waves a hand at her. “I didn’t conspire in any way to get them there.”

“Well, no” Valencia says. “It’s the other way around. They are clearly both there for you.”

Rebecca screws up her face “no.” Then she thinks about it. “And, anyway, even if they are, nothing’s happening like _that_ and I like having them there. Like we’re all grown up. All friends.”

“Right…” Valencia replies with a tone like she’s heard this before.

Rebecca looks thoughtful for a moment. “I wonder if Greg’ll come to the review. I guess I’m going to invite him as we are agreed as still friends.” She twirls a strand of hair around her finger. “Although, it’s not really his thing…”

“Ah,” Heather begins, looking uncomfortable. “I can actually help you with that…”

“What??” Rebecca interrupts her. “He’s not coming?” Her eyes widen. “He’s told Hector he’s not coming and that he doesn’t want to see me again. Oh, god he hates me doesn’t he?”

She closes her eyes and Heather punches her arm, gently.

“No…” Heather begins slowly. “Actually, he’s otherwise engaged. He’s doing a pop-up restaurant night for his MBA and it’s on the same night.”

“Oh,” Rebecca’s heart stops thudding and she feels herself starting to blush. “Cool, cool. Really? Well, that’s cool.”

“Thing is,” Heather continues. “I’ve agreed to help him out, you know, since I’m a manager, so I won’t be able to come either. To the show.”

  
“Heather!” Rebecca looks irritated. “No, actually that’s fine – you can come to the dress rehearsal.”

“Uh, great”

* * *

She doesn’t know how to feel at first about Greg missing her show. About Greg keeping himself so busy with his business projects and pop-ups. Keeping himself busy and not contacting her. Then she tells herself off. What does she want exactly? For him to be sat at home pining for her?

_Kinda…_

But, no. She knows she’s not being fair. He’s giving her the space she asked for and she needs to respect that, even if it is hard. She’s curious, however. She wants to know how things are going with the pop-up but she’s wary of asking Heather too many questions. She wants to advise him to put the cannelloni he made for her that time on the menu, and whether he’s decided if two or three deserts is enough for a pop-up. Yet, she doesn’t.

The space between them remains.

* * *

The next day at rehearsal, she finds her enthusiasm waning.

_Tickety tock goes the tick tock clock, round and round it goes_

Well, this song is disturbingly on the nose, she thinks, as they practice it for the 80th time. She finds herself fumbling her lines as she cringes at them, the Madonna/Whore complex becoming more blatant every time she performs it.

Later, she excuses herself after her pro-bono meeting as all Nathaniel wants to talk about is the show. Once upon a time, this would have been her ideal scenario – Nathaniel 100% available and even willing to reminisce with her about his theatre performances in high school. Now, however, her head is muddled and just reminds her of her growing disenchantment with her own part with the revue.

On the way home, she realizes that Josh will be there waiting for and, again, he’ll be another person wanting to rave about the rehearsal and the show. Although Josh’s sweet enthusiasm usually warms her soul, she decides she can’t face it and instead turns her Hyundai towards Homebase.

There, she finds Greg propping up the bar with his soda, chatting with Heather and Hector. It’s the first time they’ve seen each other since the breakup and she takes a steadying breath before she joins the group.

“Hi,” she says gently, gesturing to the stool next to him and perching against the bar. She sees confusion and then hesitation flicker across his face, but then he settles on a smile.

“Hey.”

“Not at rehearsal?” Heather asks from the other side of the bar.

“No, as you see…” Rebecca grins.

“Oh, yeah – so, how’s that going?” Greg asks, turning towards her.

“Great, yeah, absolutely great.” She takes a swig of the drink Heather’s put in front of her. “I can’t believe I waited such a long time to do it… I’m sure the production will be great.”

There’s a pause while the other three look at her.

“Great” she repeats.

Greg eventually smiles. “Um… glad to hear that?”

“So, anyway,” Rebecca cuts in to change the subject. “Tell me more about the re-opening of Serrano’s. Greg, that’s massive – I can’t believe it.”

“Well, it only a pop-up for one night only kinda thing” he says, looking a little sheepish. “I would have invited you but Heather told me it’s the same night as your drama thing.”

He nods towards Heather who is standing listening.

“Yup, I mean, we both have things going on don’t we?” Rebecca smiles carefully, and takes another long drink.

When Heather moves off to serve another customer, Greg leans over and asks, “so, how are things really going with the show? I’m sensing maybe not as great as you said earlier.”

Rebecca sighs. “It’s just… different than I expected. It’s not what I remembered, what I thought it’d be.”

“Huh,” Greg finishes his soda and pockets his phone, saying bye to Hector. “Well, I think it’s brave of you Rebecca, and you should keep going.”

“Yeah, I guess” she says, and gives him a little wave as he walks out of the bar.

She fiddles with the paper mat trying to make sense of her thoughts. She realizes she’s been so busy with auditioning and rehearsals that she hasn’t spent much time thinking about Greg and their breakup. Which, she guesses, is a good thing, but makes her feels a little melancholy.

If they hadn’t broken up then neither of them would be doing what they are doing right now. Theatre rehearsals and business projects are far more healthy pursuits than either of them would have considered two years earlier.

She feels proud of them both for moment but then feels a pang of sadness when she realizes Greg will ultimately be heading back to Atlanta soon and they won’t be spending any time together before he goes. And she’ll be in West Covina with a business that’s hemorrhaging money and community theatre which appears to be killing her soul.

She heaves another sigh.

“What’s up kiddo?” Heather asks.

“Oh, I’m just trying to feel happy for Greg because we broke up and then he got his life together and became successful and I never will.

“Hey, he’s not successful yet” Heather deadpans. “He might be after a week Saturday. I’ll let you know.”

“Thanks, Heather.” Rebecca says and turns to head home.

* * *

When she gets home the house is empty, and so she pulls on her comfy oversized Harvard t-shirt and stares at her lines. In minutes, her frustration bubbles up again so she goes to get snacks. As she contemplates the words, crunching on pretzels, they start to blur in front of her. She scores through a phrase and scribbles her own interpretation of it on top of it. It feels good so she does it again. And again.

Before she knows it, she’s rewritten the whole song.

* * *

“Do you think I’ve ordered enough Parmesan? I mean, an Italian restaurant can’t run out of Parmesan, right?” Greg asks Heather, starting to sound a little frantic.

Okay, we’ve already checked that, like, ten times. Just relax dude” she replies, but she puts her hand on his arm rather than rolling her eyes.

It’s the night of Serrano’s the pop-up, and Greg is starting to wonder why he ever gave up drinking.

“A nice cold beer would definitely help with the overwhelming sense of dread and humiliation I’m going to experience when no-one turns up” he mutters, darkly, straightening a tablecloth.

“Greg, relax” Heather orders, and once again he's thankful for this new 'Heather, the manager'. “We’ve been through this. Everyone loved Serrano’s. It was just Marco’s crappy business skills that ran it into the ground.”

“Right, right” he says, recollecting Marco’s boxes filed “stuff, crap, things.” He tries to think of something else to take the edge of his panic and wonders how Rebecca is getting on. He’s glad she not here to see his potential humiliation.

Then the first customers arrive, and Heather is smiling at him and being super-efficient in that new way she has now, and he has no time for overthinking anymore. 

* * *

Across town and Rebecca stares at herself in the backstage mirror. Her costume is beautiful, she thinks, yet her face does not have a smile to match.

She looks down at the flier that Josh had just given her and instantly feels better. A flier from their production at camp all those years ago and it’s the sweetest thing. Her head is suddenly full of his warm brown eyes and wait… what? Josh is her roommate now. He left her at the alter mere months ago. She dismisses the thought, she can’t be having romantic tingles towards him again, can she?

Her cheeks flush and her stomach rolls and then Josh is in front of her in his headset, gesturing her towards the stage and her anxiety skyrockets.

She stands stage side, her legs like jelly, and she’s definitely unsure theatre is going to be her saviour anymore.

“Hey.” Nathaniel is by her side, watching her, carefully, and she tries to smile at him. "You okay?"

They exchange a few words and she’s very distracted by how princely he looks in his costume. Then, as if it to prove to her that it’s not just a costume, he strides past her and out onto the stage.

Oh my god.

He’s not just singing his prince song or the terrible whore song. He’s singing _her_ song.

 _Someone else is singing my song,_ she breathes.

* * *

The next day and Paula gives Rebecca a searching look over coffee.

“You sure you’re okay, Cookie?” she pauses, while Rebecca nods. “I mean it was all kinda wow last night, wasn’t it? Nathaniel going amazingly rogue and you both getting chucked out of the company?”

“I know, I know” says Rebecca. “I really did think theatre was going to give me something to really focus on. That it was going to give me some kind of… purpose, you know?”

Paula looks sympathetic, slowly sipping her coffee.

“But I just couldn’t keep doing those songs. They just aren’t me, which is kinda weird, because I always thought I was like 70% classic theatre songs, you know?!”

“Not really… but go on” Paula grins.

“Well, I know I’ve made the right decision. To keep going with it would have only made me miserable.” She stops and frowns, slowly stirring her coffee.

“Thing is, Paula – the only good thing that came from last night were moments with Josh and Nathaniel.”

She looks away for a beat, recalling a moment backstage with Nathaniel, when she was still high on the buzz of him singing her words, and they’d almost kissed. “I did the revue to try and move on from sucky, complicated love life and yet those bits were the best part of it. I don’t know,” she shakes her head. “It’s like someone out there is telling me I need out to sort out this guy thing once and for all. Like it’s fate.”

Paula nods eagerly, but then her phone rings and she hunts around in her bag. “And what about Mr Serrano?”

Rebecca looks down. “I don’t know… he’ll be going back to Atlanta I guess, so there’s that.”

Paula takes her call and has to hurry away, and the conversation ends there, but the question remains in Rebecca’s head, and her route home leads her to Serrano’s.

“Hey” Greg is there when she enters, and he doesn’t look either annoyed or disappointed to see her.

She looks around the restaurant and is surprised at how good it looks. How professional and finished. More than just a pop-up.When she voices this thought, he looks a little abashed and tells her that’s he’s decided to stay in town after all.

The room spins and she blinks back at him. Greg Serrano choosing to stay, voluntarily, in West Covina? Without a gun to his head?

“…but now I really love this restaurant,” he finishes, and Rebecca can see it in his eyes, how at home he feels here. That he fits in this building with his family history on the wall, and even if it’s complicated history, it’s his. She feels a momentary pang of jealousy. That’s what she’d been looking for in the theatre, and so sure she’d find it, but it had mostly been a bust.

He’s also _staying_.

She tries to wrap her head around that, and the possibilities that it opens up suddenly all spin out in front of her. Since they’d broken up again, she’d been walking around with a hidden knot in her stomach. Yes, they had agreed to be friends, but she’d felt that would be insignificant, and then he’d go back to Atlanta and be gone from her life forever again.

Now he’s here, and not leaving again, and smiling at her and offering her home-cooked lasagna, and how can she say no to that? Yet, as she settles herself at a booth, an image of Nathaniel leaning into kiss her at the night of the show pops into her head.

She scrunches up her face. Dammit. Theatre was meant to be her escape from all this and instead she’s right back where she started. Looking up to the ceiling, she sighs, deeply “Someone up there really wants me to have a boyfriend, huh…?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've returned from the dead with a neeeed to finish this fic! Hoping to power on through for a Grebecca ending even if it's in 2021 and two years after the fact and no-one watches CXG anymore :D


	8. 415 I need to find my frenemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rebecca's romantic options are multiplying but will the pressure of choice cause her to bolt. Audra Levine in trouble might just be the excuse she needs.
> 
> Greg considers what it means to be just friends when you might want more.

Rebecca wakes up as the California sunlight shines directly onto her face through the gap where she hadn’t pulled the blinds properly the night before. She grunts a little and shifts her position, not wanting to get out of bed yet.

She’d been having a dream that she can’t quite remember that she wants to bask in the feeling of for a while longer. It had been a good dream, though, she remembers that much of it. Something to do with the revue, and a feeling from it, but not to do with Nathaniel or Josh. It wasn’t _that_ kind of dream (for once).

It was a moment she was chasing that she can’t get back. She lies with her eyes closed, hoping it’ll drift back into her consciousness, the way old dreams sometimes do, or like the way you suddenly remember names or words from some other part of your brain after forgetting them.

Eventually, noises and smells from Josh making breakfast in the kitchen distract her into getting out of bed. As she enters the room, he gives her a very warm smile that she wonders about for a moment, but decides to ignore and fix her breakfast instead. While she’s making her toast she sees the scrunched up pages of her rewritten song from the revue on the side.

It makes her smile. She remembers how she’d felt rewriting the lyrics. It was like she’d forged a proper connection to something and all the noise which was always there in her head was put to some practical kind of use. But then she remembers Connie’s reaction to her rewrite and how this moment, which had felt so great, had ultimately led nowhere.

Ugh. She’d learnt by the importance of managing expectaions, but why did it always have to be two steps forward and three steps back?

She starts to voice her frustrations to Josh. _I feel like I’m on the edge of something I can’t quite reach…_

But Josh is staring at her intently. Very, very intently. Too intently.

_Rebecca, I’m in love with you._

Wait… what?

* * *

“So, you just ran right out of there?” asks AJ, with a laugh.

“Yup, yup, I know.” Rebecca shakes her head.

Truth is, she had had no idea what to say to Josh’s confession. Once again, she was thankful that she now had a job where it mattered if she showed up on time, giving her a valid excuse to leave the house right away. But she knows he’ll still be there waiting for her that night when she gets home and she can’t just pretend his confession never happened. Maybe it hadn’t been the smartest move for them to move in together, given their history, but she’d been so sure it was proving _something_ at the time.

She drifts back into the conversation to hear AJ say something about grifters from the Czech Republic on Tindr and gives a sigh and looks at her phone. There’s a message from Nathaniel asking her if she’s coming to the pro-bono meeting later and fancies a drink afterwards.

Her heart leaps for a split second but then sinks again. How can she go out with Nathaniel when she knows Josh will be at home waiting for a response to his "declaration"?

_Columns, you should try columns._

Now Darryl is there, weighing in with his advice for her conundrum, and she soon finds herself in front of the stockroom white board with a marker pen in her hand.

“So, just like positive attributes then?” she asks, unsure.

“Yeah, sure” Darryl says and then grimaces. “You don’t want to unleash...erm,… bad memories. Let’s keep things positive!”

“Right, right.”

She draws three columns out and then adds Greg, Nathaniel, and Josh to the top of each.

“Huh, interesting that you wrote Greg first” muses AJ turning his head to the side. Rebecca shoots him a look but says nothing, deliberately adding “charming” as the first attribute to the top of Nathaniel’s column.

As she fills in the columns, she realizes there is a lot to like about all three of the guys. Surely, on paper she could date any of them and be happy. _On paper._ In reality, the choice seems a lot harder.

She stands back and wrinkles her nose, frowning at the board. Then she dips forward again and adds “understands me in some profound way” to the Greg column.

“What does that mean? AJ asks, raising his eyebrows.

Rebecca thinks for a few seconds. “Well, he always seems to get why I’m doing things… even if I’m doing like the most stupid thing in the world, he knows that there’s some reason why. He knows that there’s probably some reason why, I’m not just being _terrible_ and I don’t have to explain it.”

Darryl and AJ exchange a look as she continues to stare wistfully at the board. 

“But then again, we tried to date again when he came back and we broke up again, so who knows…” she adds with a defeated shrug.

Darryl tries to lift her mood by going through each of the guys’ lists in turn, but it doesn’t do much to help.

_Maybe it is Greg? Maybe it is Nathaniel? Maybe it is Josh?_

As she leans against the wall, it hits her. She’s once again in a love triangle. Except this time it’s technically a quadrangle and the guys do seem to be actually offering her a relationship this time. She thinks back two years when she’d been stuck between Josh and Greg and the massive endorphin rush it had given her, just at the thought of staring in her own real-life triangle. 

This time, it doesn’t feel at all like that. This time, she won’t be gleefully changing her Facebook relationship status to “it’s complicated” and basking at the rush of emojis and confused comments at her cryptic update.

When she looks back up, Darryl and AJ are still staring at her, wanting an answer and something sticks in her throat. Luckily, her phone starts ringing and she blinks at the incoming caller. Audra Levine’s husband. What? She has to take this. This could be something.

Never mind, she’s going to Vegas. Her Love Quadrangle can wait.

* * *

A few hours later, and Greg is sat between Darryl and Whi-Jo, trialing new pizza ideas in his restaurant. _His restaurant._ It still gives him a buzz to think about it and he smiles to himself. 

“So, thanks for agreeing to do this, guys” he says a little nervously, but also trying to hide his enthusiasm and not look too keen.

“No, problem bro, I’m always up for lunch when it’s low fat” says Whi-Jo, slapping him on the back as Darryl eagerly says “me too.”

Greg wonders momentarily how Darryl never worries about coming across too eager with people. It’s more endearing than it would appear on him, he figures.

He looks at them both carefully. He’d been surprised when Whi-Jo had casually said “Oh, I’ll bring Darryl along,” when he’d ask him to come and try some Pizza Biancos. Last time Greg had been in town they’d been very much in a committed relationship, seemingly in love and now they were separated but apparently perfectly at ease with each other.He observes them both for a bit longer, watching their interactions with curiosity. Did one, or both harbor hopes for getting back together? Was this lunch just a ruse?

It doesn’t seem so. There’s no flirting or sexual tension that he can detect. They seem just like old friends.

Whi-Jo tells a story about something that’d happened to Vick at the gym and Greg nods along. That’s right, Whi-Jo is dating someone else now and hadn’t he seen Darryl with a dark-haired woman in the market recently? Is this what grownups do, he wonders. Go out for friendly, platonic lunches with no drama or tension?

Could he do that? Well, yes, technically he already does with Heather but she doesn’t count. He feels guilty thinking it, but he’d never been in love with Heather, so it wasn’t the same. And anyway, he’d always liked her, and still does, so interacting with her isn’t difficult now.

But Rebecca? Will he have to go out for platonic lunches with her and pretend not to feel anything for her? To be unable to flirt with her, or tease her, or admire her? Or will he have to laugh with her knowing that she has another guy at home, pretending it’s okay. He feels instantly jealous and rubs his neck, uncomfortably, knowing he’s probably being unreasonable.

Time, he thinks. It’ll take time, although if that’s time to wait for Rebecca or get over her, he’s still unsure.

* * *

What fresh hell is this?

Greg had just been sat at the grown ups' table. Having lunch with Whi-Jo and Daryll in the restaurant he owns and now Josh and Nathaniel are trying to drag him backwards into some childish scheme.

It’s something to do with Rebecca. _Of course it’s something to do with Rebecca._

He doesn’t want to get involved in… whatever this is. Josh and Nathaniel know something he doesn’t know, they see him as some kind of competition and he doesn’t want to know. But maybe he is a bit curious about his name on some list of Rebecca’s. If they think he’s a threat, it must say something good about him, right?

His curiosity [and Whi-Jo’s hilarity] gets the better of him and he finds himself in Rebetzel’s in front of the white board.

_Well, you can erase my column. This is dumb, I’m out._

He says this almost automatically, but he still reads the damn board. He reads his column, and Nathaniel’s column, and Josh’s column and can’t help compare them. Is it just his own bias, or is his list _better_? It has more points on it for a start, but they also hint at something more solid and less superficial than the other two. Sure, they might have 'handsome' and have 'an incredible bod' but he’s 'funny' and 'compassionate'. And 'Foxy AH' is better than all the other superficial words anyway and what about…

No, no NO he is not getting caught up in this. The indignity of it all sweeps over him and he turns heel and leaves. His so-called “good” traits listed against Josh and Nathaniel like some clinical reality TV show. Let them both compete over her like it’s a meat market. He’s out.

* * *

Paula, Heather and Valencia are surprisingly easy to convince to go to Las Vegas on a whim but Rebecca suspects they might all have their own reasons to want to be someplace else.

“This is great!” she says, as they clink cocktail glasses. “Just the gurl group together on a girls trip. I’ve wanted this for so long.”

“Although I agree, Cookie, aren’t we to rescue Audra?” Paula asks her.

“Yeah,” Heather laughs, leaning forward. “And aren’t we obviously also here so you can avoid your love triangle.”

“It’s a love quadrangle, actually, and no that’s not the main reason.” Rebecca takes a few sips of her cocktail in a row. She was trying so hard not to mention the guys but somehow it felt like she’d never be free of them. She sighs. “Although, now you mention it I guess I am in a predicament. Who would have thought I’d have three amazing, hot guys chasing after me and somehow it’d be a _bad_ thing.

“Um, are they all chasing after you, though, honey?” Paula asks, glancing at Valencia and Heather.

“Well, Nathaniel did the play to hang out with me and Josh literally told me he was in love with me so…”

She pauses and the others stare at her.

“I mean, they keep turning up where I am. It’s not like I’m following them around. I know that sounds like something I would have once done, but no. Not anymore.”

She stares pointedly at Paula who looks away and stirs the ice in her glass.

“I’m not sure Greg has been like accidentally running into you” says Heather.

Valencia slurps her cocktail through a straw. “No, that’s true – he didn’t turn up at the theatre,” she says, trying not to slur.

Rebecca frowns a little. “I know but he said he had feelings for me and he’s staying in town now.”

“When you went to his restaurant” says Valencia, a little pointedly.

Rebecca shrugs and tries to change the subject, but it stings a little. She hadn’t just imagined things on his behalf had she? Greg wasn’t being as overt as Nathaniel or Josh, but she’d felt their unmistakable chemistry the previous evening in Serrano’s, even though she’d gone there on purely friendly terms, and he’d definitely been a bit flirty when he’d fed her his homecooked lasagne.

Despite their recent breakup he was still there as an option wasn’t he? Or did she just want him to be?

“Anyway,” Valencia continues, moving on. “I’m glad we’re here for whatever reason” and she clinks glasses again. “It sure beats siting in West Covina and waiting, or not waiting, for your girlfriend to propose.”

She sways a little bit and Paula moves the glass away from her.

“Okay, agreed,” says Heather. “And speaking of people, who are trying to run away from their problems, shouldn’t we try and help your frenemy, Rebecca?”

Rebecca looks up again, glad of the distraction. “Yes, we totally should.”

* * *

“What?!?” asks Greg in disbelief, staring at Whi-Jo. “Have you lost your mind?”

Wasn’t Whi-Jo supposed to be the sensible one? The grounded, judgy one who loves judging all the Rebecca Bunch drama and shenanigans. And now he’s suggesting that they have some kind of dating competition to… how was it that Nathaniel (presumably) had put it… “win Rebecca’s hand”.

Greg runs his hand across his face and shakes his head. “No” screams at him from every corner of his mind.

He feels offended at the thought of it. His relationship with Rebecca, however messy and complicated, had also been one of the most profound and incredible things to ever happen to him. When thinks of where he was when she entered his life and how he is now… well, it’s a lot. To boil all that down to one date and be in a competition with Nathaniel and Josh.

He goes to the fridge, pulls out a soda and angrily gulps it down. It doesn’t feel right.

Yet, that night he has trouble sleeping. He keeps imagining having Nathaniel and Josh preening as they get ready for their dates. Imagining Rebecca excited at the prospect of the dates while he watches on from the side lines. She’d be friendly towards him – cordial – thinking he no longer cares because he didn’t want to join in with the dates. And then after the dates she would be somehow dating Nathaniel or Josh and he’d have to watch, still keeping silent.

He rolls over and puts his head under his pillow with a groan.

Two hours later he wakes up in a sweat thinking about Jayma’s wedding. Rebecca’s face as she pleads for him to say something and through the blur of alcohol he slurs “I think you’re really cool.” He shudders at the thought of her face and how it had crumpled with disappointment. It also brings back a look she’d given him at Raging Waters when he knew she wanted him to say something meaningful to her – to speak his actual feelings. But the day had been going all wrong and it wasn’t the right time and then he’d missed his chance (again.)

He stares at the ceiling, wide awake now.

“ _You guys seem like you have something special_ ” Whi-Jo had said, admittedly through gritted teeth, but he’d still said and coming from him it seemed genuine.

For the next few hours Greg lies awake, thinking about his relationship with Rebecca. About how only a few weeks ago they’d been lying next to each other at night. He’d been on his back like this, his arm around her and she’d slept with her head against his shoulder. Her curls had been tickling had been tickling the side of his face but he hadn’t minded.

About how they’d reunited again in Rebetzel’s and then at Darryl apartment and how effortless it had been lying in each other’s arms smiling in disbelief that this was able to happen again. He’d been able to get the words out that day and it had led to them reconnecting.

And when they’d been back together for those glorious few weeks and it’d had seemed like normal functioning relationship – one where they didn’t go very far, granted – but still, in the realms of normal. Having amazing sex, yes, but more than just that. Talking together, laughing with the each other. Rebecca had been so interested in his life in Atlanta, wanting to know all about his classes – which were his favourites, who were the best professors, where he hung out between classes. When she’d come to Serrano’s the other day it had felt just the same. Laughing at his excitement over varieties of tomatoes but then enthusing over recipes and ingredients with him with the same vigour she’d used about his classes.

He’d made some terrible joke about his friend Chris from Homebase and the fact he can drive now and he’d made her laugh. Snort, in fact, and they’d been right there staring at each other with shared secret smiles at the knowledge of their mutual admiration, the moment only broken by the sudden ring of his restaurant phone.

He had been trying to be respectful and give her space since they broke up but when she was there it was hard to deny his feelings hadn’t gone away.

Yes, he missed her.

As the dawn light begins to streak across the sky Greg is still awake. “God I’m really going to do this aren’t I?”

* * *

Rebecca opens the door to Serrano’s to find Josh, Nathaniel and Greg all staring at her. Josh gives her a warm open smile, Nathaniel is sat eagerly on the edge of his chair, and Greg gives her a cautious half-smile. Yet it’s his eyes she feels the burn of the most.

This is it. There’s no more running from them, no more than Audra could run from the responsibility of three babies.

As they explain the scenario to her – a date with each of them to help her decide who she wants to date – her heart thumps. Can this really be happening? Would she really soon be in a relationship with one of them? Would one of them be her “one”. Her endgame. She’s not going to miss this chance. With all the terrible luck she’s had in her previous romantic life, her stars must be in alignment now. This is her chance, three hot guys who all want to date her, this opportunity is too good to come around again.

“Okay, I’m in.”

Greg meets her eye, looks away quickly, and the looks back with a small smile as if to say I know, I can’t believe I’m doing this either.

She clears her throat. She should feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now, but as she smiles back at Greg there’s something heavy in her stomach that doesn’t feel like it’s going away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry at the long gap between posting chapters. This one was tricky because we hardly get any motivation for Greg deciding to join the dates apart from that brief conversation with Whi-Jo and I didn't really want to go too much into the LV storyline.  
> Am more excited about writing the next two parts so hopefully they should be up sooner.


End file.
